While the United States government insists that "the rule of law" must be the model for other nations to follow, the world's most powerful democracy does not heed its own counsel in the respectful and legal treatment of those Indian Nations with whom it has concluded treaties.

The Treaty of Neah Bay was conducted as are all treaties with other nations, and was ratified by the US Senate. It states that the Makah tribe shall have the right to utilize fish and whales for their sustenance and livelihood. Here's the interesting thing about American treaty law: A treaty supersedes any domestic or contrary legislation. It is legally the ultimate ruling and it can not be declared of lesser importance than domestic laws such as the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

The United States broke the Treaty of Neah Bay by bullying the Makah tribe into believing that they could not whale until the IWC approved their resumption, and now, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that they may not resume their whale hunt until such time as the federal government conducts an environmental impact statement on such resumption, and until the government also grants them an exemption from compliance with the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Act forbids Americans the use of any marine mammals such as seals or whales. Sealing also was a mainstay of the historic Makah way of living out on the Olympic Peninsula, where they prospered for thousands of years, until white men came and depleted their resources to the point where they could no longer subsist on them.

The US government is ignoring the legal priority of treaty law in this case. The Fund for Animals and other animal rights groups are suing the government in order to prevent the Makah from ever legally whaling again. This power play is shameful because the government has allowed it to continue instead of declaring once and for all that the Treaty is the ultimate authority. We can only assume that the reason why the government itself did not declare the Treaty to be of primary authority in this case, is probably because of fears that animal rights propaganda would weaken each current administration's political strength. No administration wants animal rights or environmentalist organizations to target its policies and decisions, thus making the government the focus of unfavorable media/Internet attention. Animal rights groups are happy about this deplorable situation, because for them, it is the ultimate on-going fund- raiser. They have elevated their image with their supporters because they have demonstrated power over people who cannot take whales because of this unconscionable lawsuit.

IWMC deplores this shameful situation. The Makah people deserve to be granted their legal right to resume their subsistence whale hunt, for whatever purposes are important to their culture.

There is no legal or environmental reason why these people should not use gray whales for the cultural and nutritional benefits that sustained them spiritually and physically in times past. Good luck and best wishes to the Makah Nation. May they find their destiny once again in their homeland on the Olympic Peninsula.