The Wire

The International Whaling Commission’s (IWC) most important meeting in decades has been shut down within the first hour and sent behind closed doors. The Commission is debating a proposal to scrap a failed 25-year ban on commercial hunting and allow whaling under a more rigorous regime. Environmental Minister Peter Garrett says the abrupt decision to close the debate is “concerning.” The Rudd Government rejects the IWC’s compromise to allow some whaling and calls for a total hunting ban.