The Berlin Initiative on strengthening the conservation agenda of the International Whaling Commission: toward a new era for cetaceans?

Journal of International Wildlife Law & Policy, September, 2003 by William C.G. Burns

1. INTRODUCTION

The 55th Meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) was held in Berlin from June 16-19, 2003. The signal development at the meeting was the passage of a resolution, denominated "the Berlin Initiative," establishing a Conservation Committee to guide the IWC's future conservation agenda. (1) The extremely narrow margin of passage, 25-20-1, (2) reflected the high level of controversy that the proposal engendered among the Parties and nongovernmental organizations that play an active role at IWC meetings. For example, a statement released by 17 Parties to the IWC, fully one-third of its membership, expressed concern that the Initiative "will essentially destroy the already polarized and dysfunctional IWC," and characterized it as an "attempt to...