Contact: Will Anderson, (206)787-2500, extension 841
Alberta Thompson, Makah Elder, (360) 645-2544
In the June 16, Sunday edition of the Peninsula Daily News, several Makah elders, including the eldest living Makah, spoke out in a one-half page ad against the Makah Tribal Council's plan to kill five gray whales per year. The Makah Tribal Council (MTC), the corporate representatives of the Makah Nation, is petitioning the International Whaling Commission (IWC) for an annual quota when it meets in Aberdeen, Scotland on June 24. The MTC has stated that it retains an option to enter into commercial whaling, and may whale regardless of the IWC decision.
Will Anderson, working in the Advocacy Department of the Progressive Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), traveled to the Makah village of Neah Bay after requests by PAWS and several other organizations to meet with MTC officials and representatives were met with silence for over a year. "After spending time in Neah Bay, I discovered that the whaling proposal is very controversial among the Makah. When it became obvious that elders were among the opposition, PAWS offered to coordinate the funding for a newspaper ad that the elders could use to say whatever they wished. The words are theirs," stated Anderson.
The nine organizations sponsoring the ad are: Animal Protection Institute, Animal Welfare Institute, Cetacean Society International, Chicago Animal Rights Coalition, Friends of Animals, The Humane Society of the United States, International Wildlife Coalition, Progressive Animal Welfare Society, and Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.
A previous ad, Open Letter To The Makah Nation, requested the Makah to not fulfill the 1855 Treaty that explains Makah whaling rights. It was signed by 240 organizations from around the world. That signature list has grown to be in excess of 300 environmental and animal welfare groups.
Bob Chorush
Progressive Animal Welfare Society PAWS
Box 1037, Lynnwood, WA 98046
(206) 787-2500 ext 862
fax (206) 742-5711
bchorush@paws.org