New Delhi: In total defiance of governments and leading conservation groups around the world, the Government of Iceland has confirmed that Icelandic whalers had killed their first whale, marking the nation’s return to whaling after 14 years.

The country was forced to stop whaling in 1989 through an international boycott of Icelandic fish products. Last year it rejoined the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and announced it would return to commercial whaling in 2006. This followed Iceland’s announcement last week that it would kill 38 mink whales between August 15 and September 30, 2003 using a loophole in the IWC whaling moratorium that allows for scientific whaling. The announcement was met with strong criticism from governments worldwide including the United States. Seventeen countries including the United States, United Kingdom, and Germany (three countries which alone import over 40% of all Icelandic exports) have filed formal objections to Iceland’s refusal to recognize the international whaling ban.

“Breaking the ban on whaling makes no sense for Iceland. This will literally chase away the thriving whale watching industry and ultimately hurt the Icelandic economy,” said Fred O’Regan, IFAW’s president. “This is bad decision for whales, for international cooperation, for Icelandic tourists and fishermen and for Icelandic taxpayers who have to underwrite the whole thing.”

Iceland’s return to whaling is expected to have a significant impact on its own economy. The Icelandic Tourist Industry Association has voiced strong opposition to the decision to resume whaling. Forty percent of all Iceland’s tourists engage in whale watching, and the country is considered the finest whale watching destination in Europe. Whale watching is the fastest-growing sector of the tourist industry in the country, worth around $8 million (USD) annually

Photos : Ragnar Th. Sigurdsson