Commercial whaling, Australia's shark net threat to cetaceans and creation of a South Atlantic whale sanctuary - the battle to protect whales comes to Hobart
Humane World for Animals Australia
HOBART, Australia (23 Sept. 2026)—The 70th meeting of the International Whaling Commission this week in Hobart will see NGOs and governments from around the world gather to discuss and vote on some of the most pressing issues related to great whales, including the future of the global moratorium on commercial whaling. Humane World for Animals sets out some of the priority items on the agenda.
Once again, a proposal to establish a South Atlantic whale sanctuary has been submitted by Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay. Countries in the region have been attempting to pass a vote at the IWC to create this sanctuary for the past 28 years, but it has consistently been blocked by commercial whaling nations from the Northern Hemisphere and their diplomatic allies. If successful it will permanently place the South Atlantic Ocean out of bounds to commercial whaling.
There is a dangerous Resolution on the agenda attempting to lift the forty-year-old commercial whaling ban. The Resolution for the Implementation of a Conservation and Management Program for Whale Stocks aimed towards the Sustainable Use of Whale Resources, proposed by Antigua Barbuda with Palau, St Kitts and Nevis, St Lucia and Togo as co-sponsors, aims to set up a taskforce to discuss a return to commercial whaling.
Humane World for Animals urges countries to reject efforts to undermine the moratorium and instead agree to resolutions to address ship strikes, strandings and dolphin bycatch in fisheries.
With a pledge earlier this year from the Icelandic Industries minister, Hanna Katrín Friðriksson, to introduce a legislative bill this autumn to ban commercial whaling, it is hoped that the ranks of pro-whaling nations is shrinking. We do expect Iceland and Norway’s continued killing of whales in defiance of the moratorium will face scrutiny during the Commission’s examination of whale killing methods and welfare. Although Japan withdrew from the IWC, its pro-whaling influence is ever present at the Commission via its diplomatic allies such as Antigua & Barbuda.
Australia’s use of controversial shark nets, which so often entangle non-target species including humpback whales on their migration route, could be under the spotlight.
Nicola Beynon, campaigns director at Humane World for Animals Australia, says: “The forty-year-old global moratorium on commercial whaling has spared the lives of hundreds of thousands of cetaceans and been instrumental in pulling many species back from the brink of extinction, so it is imperative it remains intact for future generations. With climate change imperilling the food chains whales depend on, countries must use the meeting to double down on efforts to prevent threats within our control. Now more than ever we need delegates at this whaling summit to come together to protect whales from commercial persecution, ship strikes, entanglement, noise pollution and climate change.”
Grettel Delgadilo, Latin America director of program and policy at Humane World for Animals, said: “Historically, more than 70% of whales killed globally during the 20th century were taken from the Southern Hemisphere, devastating regional populations. With a quarter of the world’s cetacean species listed as Critically Endangered, Endangered or Vulnerable, it is imperative that we establish this sanctuary to help ensure these species recover and thrive for future generations, as well as benefit local communities that rely on booming ecotourism such as responsible whale watching.”
Humane World for Animals Australia will have representatives attending from Australia and Costa Rica and available for media interview, as well as additional experts available remotely from Australia, Costa Rica, the EU and the United States.
About us:
About Humane World for Animals:
Together, we tackle the root causes of animal cruelty and suffering to create permanent change. With millions of supporters and work happening in over 50 countries, Humane World for Animals—formerly called Humane Society International—addresses the most deeply entrenched forms of animal cruelty and suffering. As the leading voice in the animal protection space, we work to end the cruellest practices, care for animals in crisis and build a stronger animal protection movement. Driving toward the greatest global impact, we aim to achieve the vision behind our name: a more humane world.
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Contact details:
• Australia: Sam Edmonds: 0436 302 272; [email protected]
• United Kingdom: Wendy Higgins, [email protected]
• Costa Rica: Alejandra Zuniga, [email protected]