Between “Culture” and “Commerce”

Abstract

“Commercial” vs. “non-commercial” are two concepts frequently used as binal opposites together with “aboriginal” vs. “non-aboriginal” and “culture/subsistence” vs. “commercial”. In the International Whaling Commission (IWC), there are two management categories known as “aboriginal/subsistence whaling” and “commercial whaling”. Catching of minke whales by small-type coastal whalers in Japan, which was ended when the IWC's moratorium on commercial whaling was implemented in 1987, has been caught between these two categories and has not been permitted to resume even after intensive efforts by the Government of Japan and lengthy discussion in the IWC over many years. This paper reviews more than thirty-five documents concerning small-type coastal whaling submitted to the IWC by the Government of Japan and the discussions based on these documents that took place in various meetings of the Commission. Problems in applying the above noted conceptual distinctions as they relate to resolution of the small-type coastal whaling issue in present day society are pointed out. These problems are also examined in the broader context of aboriginal resource use in order to develop workable concepts that are needed for an effective resource management. Keywords: Small-type Coastal Whaling, Subsistence, Commerce, International Whaling Commission, Applied Anthropology