On March 6, 2003, the Czech News Agency announced that Greenpeace Czechoslovakia is trying to persuade the Ministry of the Environment of the Czech Republic that they should join the IWC. Because the Czech Republic is landlocked in the middle of Eastern Europe, the nation has never had any official interest in whales, whaling, whale cuisine, whale oil, or in saving whales from or for anything. So why now?

Perhaps part of the answer lies in the aspirations of Greenpeace in Eastern Europe. For years, Greenpeace has been an active voice for the environment in this extremely polluted region. The burning of soft coal, the industrial development of probably unsafe nuclear power plants, the thousands of unfiltered smoke stacks, untreated pools of industrial waste, and unregulated chemical hazards of all kinds spewed onto the landscape have all given the Czech Republic's people a pain in the countryside. Czech youth have begun to listen to and join Greenpeace Czech Republic in its efforts to make enough noise so that the post-Communist government might heed their demands. Greenpeace has become a force to be reckoned with because it is attracting young voters. The whaling issue can be seen as attractive to Czech youth, whose support will be another political plus for the NGO, as it strives to convince the government there that it represents the will of a growing young electorate.

Meantime, Greenpeace International needs help in its anti-whaling campaign. The Like Minded side of the IWC needs more votes to prevent the passage of any form of the Revised Management Scheme, which would then lead to quotas and a lifting of the moratorium on commercial whaling. The IWC has become a market place for votes for both sides, and the Czech Republic is a possible additional vote for the Like Mindeds. The Czech parliament will soon decide - it shouldn't cost anything - Greenpeace will probably pay the entry fee of 20,000 pounds. The Czech Republic would lose nothing by joining the IWC, and might win at home by pleasing Greenpeace, which is a hero to its youth. At-home politics is what it's all about when activist NGOs get into the whaling issue.

The Czech Republic officials know that for them, this is not about whales. It is about reducing Greenpeace pressure and about pleasing their youth. The Like Minded nations will applaud the Czech Republic for joining with them, and possibly, some might encourage development in the struggling Republic. Meanwhile, the Czech air, land and river water will continue to be as polluted as before, but Greenpeace Czech Republic will have gained strength in numbers through its whale inclusion campaign, so maybe some progress will be made in combating the heavy pollution levels. Or maybe not. Once again, the hypocrisy regarding concern over whale conservation in the IWC will continue as before, with one side making management decisions based on science, and the other, Like Minded, side making decisions based on the symbolism of strength in numbers. The Czech Republic can be expected to join in this charade, and only time will tell whether or not this sorry spectacle shall result in victory for whale conservation or merely in a show of strength for local Greenpeace and international Greenpeace supporters. Stay tuned for the outcome of this ongoing saga of votes counted and power demonstrated on the world stage.