Highlights and images for 24 October 2016

Summary

IWC-66 opened today in Portorož, Slovenia, chaired by IWC Chair Bruno Mainini (Switzerland).

Opening remarks were given by: Irena Majcen, Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning, Slovenia; Darja Bavdaž Kuret, Slovenian State Secretary of Foreign Affairs; Meira Hot, Deputy Mayor of the host municipality of Piran; and Simon Brockington, IWC Executive Secretary.

Delegates heard reports from the Scientific Committee and the Conservation Committee and then dove into one of the most controversial items on the agenda: a draft proposal to establish a whale sanctuary in the South Atlantic. This issue had been addressed - and rejected - at previous IWC meetings. At IWC-66, strongly opposing views were heard as well and the vote on the proposed sanctuary was deferred until Tuesday morning.

Delegates then discussed draft resolutions on enhancing the effectiveness of the IWC and on improving the review process for whaling under special permit (scientific whaling). There was substantial discussion on these two items and both were referred to informal working groups for further discussion during the week.

In the evening, participants attended a welcome reception hosted by the Government of Slovenia.

IISD Reporting Services, through its ENB Meeting Coverage, has provided daily web highlights from IWC66. In addition, IISD Reporting Services has published a summary report of the meeting in HTML and PDF.
Photos by IISD/ENB
For photo reprint permissions, please follow instructions at our Attribution Regulations for Meeting Photo Usage Page

Opening dais (L-R) Meira Hot, Deputy Mayor of Piran, Slovenia; Irena Majcen, Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning, Slovenia; IWC Chair Bruno Mainini, Switzerland; Darja Bavdaž Kuret, State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Slovenia; and Simon Brockington, IWC Executive Secretary.