Iceland's whale hunting makes waves with critics

The fish markets along the Fanne fjord in this western Norwegian town boast magnificent, two-foot-long farm-raised salmon, fillets of fresh cod, and haddock.

And then there's what looks like an extra lean cut of beef lying on the fishmongers' ice. It's minke whale, ready for the broiler or barbecue.

While the US and many other nations condemn whaling, Norway is the one country in the world that continues to hunt them on a commercial basis. Last year, Norway killed more than 600 minkes, most of which were consumed within the country.

And after a 14-year hiatus, Iceland last month resumed whaling for "scientific purposes," sending its whalers out this year to harvest 38 of the 20- to 35-foot-long minkes off its near-Arctic shores.

Iceland's decision has sparked anew the global controversy over hunting the huge cetaceans. Britain led an international protest by 23 countries last week condemning Iceland's harvesting plans as "unjustified and unnecessary" and a violation of the spirit of a moratorium agreed by the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in June.

Commercial hunting of whales has been outlawed since 1986, because many of the great whale species are endangered. Iceland, which stopped whaling then under international pressure, now says it must control whales to protect fish stocks and fishermen's livelihood. Reykjavik had announced its intention just before the IWC's June annual meeting. There, a resolution calling for a "strengthening of the conservation agenda" passed by a 25 to 20 vote, deepening the divide between whaling and non-whaling nations.

Japan, which kills nearly 700 minkes for "scientific" purposes each year, denounced the resolution and threatened to leave the IWC, charging that the body had strayed from its original mission of creating conditions to allow the sustainable harvest of whales.

Japanese ships take hundreds of whales each year, ostensibly to check on the creatures' health. Critics call this commercial whaling in disguise. After research is done, the whale meat is transported for consumption, which is required by IWC rules.

Antiwhaling organizations argue that whale hunting is an antiquated barbaric practice. "There is absolutely no way to kill a whale humanely, and we believe that on that basis alone, it's time to say goodbye to whaling," says Chris Tuite of the International Fund for Animal Welfare in Yarmouthport, Mass.

Mr. Tuite notes that with the IWC's 1986 ban on most forms of whaling, whale hunting has been increasingly replaced by whale watching - an industry he estimates to be worth more than $1 billion a year worldwide.

But here in Norway, where whales have been hunted for thousands of years, even environmental groups support whaling.

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