The unacceptable killing of whales in Iceland: how to intervene

I am five videos That the Icelandic Food and Veterinary Authority (MAST) is publishing to draw world attention to the unacceptable ways of killing whales in Iceland. A long and cruel agony which lasted from 11 to 17 minutes for 41% of the 148 commercially slaughtered whales in Iceland in 2022 and that for some of them it lasted up to two hours. A complaint that would have also had the support of international stars of Icelandic music such as Bjork and the band of Sigur Rossalready in the past attentive to issues related to marine ecology and whales in particular, ready to make themselves available to ask the Icelandic authorities to stop these massacres.

The whaling station

In the video the overlay timer clearly shows the seconds and minutes that pass from the moment the harpoon is fired from the deck of the ship, going to stick in the body of the whale tens of meters away, until the moment when the cetacean dies. Long and distressing moments of real cruelty, during which the animal struggles in the bloody waves desperately trying to break free and get rid of the harpoon stuck in its back.

The video was posted on the Instagram page of The Last Whaling Station who is making a feature film halfway between a documentary and a film as part of a series of films on the climate crisis to tell the story of the last whaling station in Iceland and the battle to end commercial whaling.

Whales are incredibly important for the ecosystem and our survival on the planet. We nearly drove the whales to extinction 75 years ago at their peak trade, and they still haven’t recovered since.. We must preserve and protect all whales – they help fertilize the oceans and sequester tons of carbon during their lifetime. We need whales in our battle against climate change.”

The petition to stop hunting immediately

In the meantime, it has also started petition addressed to Icelandic prime minister and to the Minister of Food, Agriculture and Fisheries who has already collected almost 5,000 signatures and which we are all called upon to sign. «We ask the revocation of whaling license and that these brutal killings be stopped and banned once and for all” – reads the text of the petition which motivates the request with the Collected data during last year’s hunting season aboard a whaler.

He continues: “Last year, animal welfare officials were aboard the hunting vessel of the Hvalur whaling company ehf (last remaining Icelandic company, owning two whaling boats) and they documented and filmed 58 of 148 fin whales killed in that season. 36 whales (24%) were hit more than once with explosive harpoons. Of these, five whales were shot three times and four were shot four times. To put this figure into perspective, it takes approx 8 minutes to reload the harpoon that he must strike a fast-moving animal in the ocean more than once if he fails to kill. A whale with a spear in its back she was chased for 5 hours without success. The median time from first strike to death of whales that didn’t die immediately was 11.5 minutes, while slow, agonizing deaths lasted up to two hours. Three whales were shot down but failed to be captured and struggled a long time with an excruciating death. Horrible treatment of animals in this way is unacceptable.”

Why wait any longer?

Fisheries Minister Svandis Svavarsdottir announced in early 2022 that Iceland would end whaling by 2024. “There is little justification for authorizing any more whaling when the current quotas expire,” he told the newspaper. Morgunbladid.

Although the consumption of whale meat is now in decline also in Japan – one of three countries along with Iceland and Norway that engage in commercial whale fishing – still for 2023, therefore, Iceland is once again ready to inaugurate a new hunting season from June onwards. Iceland’s latest annual quotas allow it to cull 209 endangered fin whales and 217 minke whales. But Iceland’s exports of whale meat have dropped sharply after Japan’s controversial decision to resume commercial whaling after a three-decade hiatus. Covid also had a strong repercussion: lockdowns and quarantines imposed to contain the contagion had slowed down work in the factories, leading to an effective decrease in production. So everything seems to indicate as the only viable way that of abandoning huntingbut hundreds more whales are destined to die needlessly.