抄録
A U.S.-Russian request to allow Alaskan Eskimos and native peoples of Chukotka to catch bowhead whales was rejected at the 54th annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission held in Shimonoseki, Japan in May 2002. Consequently, at the time of annual meeting, unless a compromise was reached by 2003, the indigenous peoples would not be able to hunt bowhead whales as from the 2003 whaling season. After all, the request was accepted by consensus at the special meeting of the International Whaling Commission in October 2002. The final result was not so bad for the indigenous peoples. However, what on earth was the confusion for these five months? In this paper, the importance of bowhead and gray whaling for the indigenous communities of Alaska and Chukotka which have been influenced by the external forces, will be reviewed.
In Alaska, the Iñupiat and Yupiit have hunted bowhead whales for over 2000 years. Hunting bowhead whales in Alaska remains a communal activity that supplies whale meat and maktak for the entire community. Formalized patterns of hunting, sharing and consumption of the whales characterize the indigenous way of life. Bowhead whaling constitutes a great part of the indigenous peoples' cultural tradition and their cultural identity. Bowhead whaling, culturally, still has much importance today.
On the other hand, the Yupiit and Chukchi on the Chukotka Peninsula have harvested gray whales and bowhead whales for over 2000 years. The whalers of Chukotka have been influenced by the shift to gray whaling from bowhead whaling, and the transition to government-controlled ship whaling from indigenous whaling. As a result of the demise of the Soviet Union, Chukotka communities experienced near-complete economic collapse. Recently the indigenous peoples have begun to use more wildlife resources, especially marine mammals, than before. Gray whales are important for the Chukchi as food and bowhead whales play an important role in revival of traditional culture of the Yupiit.
It is clear that bowhead whales and/or gray whales are culturally and nutritionally indispensable resources in Alaska and Chukotka. Bowhead whaling on both sides of the Bering Strait must be continued in the 2003 whaling sea—son.
