Reykjavík Grapevine - 31.07.2009, Page 10

The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 11 — 2009
While some whales
are being watched by
curious admirers in
whale watching vessels
near Icelandic shores,
others are less fortunate.
The highly controversial Icelandic whale
hunting season is underway, not for the
first time, probably not for the last.
February, a day after the centre-
right government of Iceland fell,
departing Minister of Fisheries Einar K.
Guðfinnsson announced a commercial
whaling quota for up to 150 fin whales
and 100 minke for the next five years.
This time, the issue of returning to
commercial whaling was especially
controversial in Iceland, since it was
doubtful whether Guðfinnsson had
the authority to make such a weighty
decision after his government coalition
had burst.
Even though the new left-wing
government considered reverting, its
hands were tied since this minority
government, in place until the elections
of April 25, needed the support of the
Progressive party, who did not want a
reversal. Now that elections have been
held and the left wing parties form a
majority government, Guðfinnsson’s
decision has not been reversed, and
whaling has commenced anew.
Do we need all this
negative attention?
It has been debated whether or not
Iceland needs any more negative
international attention, and whether
there is any market for the catch. Plus, it
is speculated that whaling could reduce
the number of visiting tourists, which
would be especially worrisome now
that the economy desperately needs as
much currency as possible.
In spite of these issues, commercial
whaling is far from being as widely
opposed in Iceland as in the United
States and the EU, where the majority
of those polled oppose harvesting
whales under any circumstance. And
even though the EU and the US are
Iceland’s most important trading
partners, public opinion polls in
Iceland indicate widespread support
for whaling (about 2/3 of Icelanders
support whaling according to recent
polls). For international observers, the
political costs of the newfangled pro-
whaling policy may seem to outweigh
any conceivable economic benefits, but
in the eyes of many Icelanders, killing
a whale is no more inhumane than
killing any other animal. Anti-whalers
are frequently accused of holding
“sentimental” views based on anything
but common sense; in fact, there is no
active save-the-whales movement in the
country.
Back from the brink?
Pro-whalers argue that minke whales
and fin whales are far from being at risk
of extinction. Secondly, while fishermen
are only allowed to catch a limited quota
each year in order to protect the fish-
stocks from exhaustion - whales eat
fish 24/7 – fish that otherwise could
be “ours” according to many (although
the ocean’s food chain is undoubtably
more complex than that). This time, with
unemployment rising rapidly in Iceland,
it has also been argued that whaling
could provide up to 300 jobs.
Since the 1970s, when whales
were designated an endangered
species, pressure from environmental
organisations, the International Whaling
Commission and various national
governments to cease whaling has
intensified. And if the state of whale
population can represent a barometer
for planetary health, then the earth’s
condition would appear to have
improved, as several species, including
minke whales and fin whales, have
made their trip back from the brink of
extinction.
Therefore, protecting them is
tantamount to protecting the rainforests.
Plus, whales are said to be very intelligent
mammals, with a complex, sophisticated
communication system and killing them
is nothing but cruel. And since whales
travel in and out of Icelandic waters,
they are viewed as common property
resources that should not be exploited
without interstate cooperation, even
though pro-whalers in Iceland often
argue that the whales in “our” waters are
“our” resources and that how we choose
to harvest them is nobody’s business but
our own.
Silent opposition
The conflict between pro-whaling states
and preservationists has intensified in
recent decades and there is no sign of
any mutual agreement or understanding
in the near future. Icelanders will
continue to be criticized by foreigners
and environmental organisations for
“butchering” an intelligent, endangered
species like the whale. When polled,
foreign nationals tend to answer that if
the Icelandic government allows whaling,
they will be less likely to travel to Iceland,
which the local tourist industry finds
very worrisome. Yet, nothing indicates
that whaling has had any negative effect
on the tourism industry – visitors keep
visiting Iceland and watching its whales,
knowing that somewhere in the same
ocean, people are shooting them.
So, in spite of international outrage,
the majority of Icelanders do not see
any reason why the whale shouldn’t be
hunted and eaten just like the fish. The
pressure on Iceland to stop whaling
may seem great from the outside
observer’s perspective, and the benefit
of continuing it may not look obvious.
But the effect of harvesting whales
simply doesn’t seem negative at all to
the local community. And even though
Icelanders, who see the whales as
charismatic mammals that need to be
protected do exist, they are few.
And not very loud.
Iceland was settled in 874 by
Norwegians looking for a better
life than the one they had at home.
Whether or not they found it we will
never know, but the fact is that most of
them remained – until now. In times
of natural disasters
or famine in the
past, some did
leave, but most
of them
opted for
the greener
pastures
of the new
world and
settled in
the U.S. or
Canada,
rather than
Norway.
Since
last fall’s
economic
catastrophes,
and the subsequent
increase in unemployment,
a many Icelanders have packed up
their stuff and left. The Norwegian
Directorate of Labour estimates that
around 90% of those who did so went
to Norway. Unemployment seems
to not be a problem there, as a lot of
Norwegian companies are advertising
jobs in Icelandic newspapers and
employment agencies. In Iceland,
Norway has by many been dubbed “the
most boring Scandinavian country.”
Nonetheless many Icelanders are now
returning to the mother ship, so to
speak.
Why Norway?
So why is Norway suddenly so
appealing? And is the percentage of
Norwegian-bound escapists really as
high as 90%? According to Árni Steinar
Stefánsson, a EURES consultant at the
Icelandic Directorate of Labour, it is
hard to estimate the exact numbers.
“But Norway is definitely the most
popular destination among those
who are thinking about moving or
working abroad.” And when asked
about Norway ś sudden popularity,
Árni says: “When compared to other
countries in the European Economic
Area, Norway has one of the best work-
situations. Overall they only have about
2,7% unemployment rate. It is also close
to Iceland, the culture and standard of
living are similar and the language is
relatively easy for Icelanders to learn”.
Victim of Icelandic urban legends
Lóa Bára Magnúsdóttir, a 24 year old
about to graduate
from
the European Business School in
London with an MA in International
Marketing Management, recently
decided to move to Oslo in the fall. She
and her boyfriend, Freyr Pálsson, who
is working on his M.Sc. in Engineering
Geology at Imperial College, had
already left Iceland for London when
shit hit the fan in October. And they are
not so keen on coming back. "When I
came home for Christmas and when
I talk to people from home today it is
clear that they are tired and angry and
there is a lot of hopelessness. We are
lucky enough to have only been renting
in Iceland so we are not bound by any
financial obligations. And even before
we left, the employment situation had
gotten tough. We thought about staying
in London, but there are not so many
jobs on offer and the standard of living
is lower than in Norway.” So when Freyr
was offered a job in Oslo they didn t́
hesitate. Lóa is currently looking for
employment in Oslo and is optimistic.
“There is a lot on offer for me as well.
The language will not be a problem and
it seems like a good country to live in.
I think Icelanders can learn a lot from
Norwegians on how to handle money.”
Their plan is to stay in Norway for at
least three to five years. “Of course I will
miss my family and friends. But I think
life there is better than in Iceland right
now. The pay is better, you get more free
time and your private life is respected.
I have a good feeling about this, and
I think that the Icelandic myth about
Norway being lame and boring is just
an urban legend”.
Maybe it really is better
Erna Rán Arndísardóttir (31) and
her husband, Ingólfur Þór
Tómasson decided
to pack up their
family of five and
another on the
way (Erna is
expecting in
September)
and move
to Norevik,
a small
Norwegian
town, at
the end of
May. “We
watched our
mortgage and
loans grow higher and higher and this
was basically the only way out. I think
we saw our mortgage go up by 300.000
ISK in 30 days. And just listening to
the news or what people around you
were talking about was enough to
make you feel bad. Everything was so
negative. You couldn't meet anybody
without them telling you some bad
news. So we were just kind of fed up.
We went on very short notice, let out our
apartment and left. Both my husband
and I have worked in tourism for a long
time and he runs a travel company
in both Iceland and Norway. So that
is why we chose Norway rather than
another country. But of course the fact
that Norway has a very good social
system was also a factor. The business
has mostly been during the summer
months, but we are going to try to see if
we can get things to pick up a bit during
the wintertime as well. We plan to stay
here at least until the fall of 2010, and
then we will see if we stay or go back to
Iceland. But if things in Iceland don t́
get better during the next year or so I
don t́ think we want to come back.”
And when asked if life in Norway is
better, Erna ś answer is simple: “So far –
yes.”
10
Article | Current affairs Opinion | Hildur Edda Einarsdóttir
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Centerhotels_254x95_grapevine09.pdf 7/1/09 11:51:11 AM
Going back to Norway, yay! Their fjords are bigger, their men are taller,
their prices are higher and the beer is ludicrously expensive!
Going Back To Where We Came From
An estimated 90% of those f leeing Iceland are headed for Norway
“Of course I will miss my family and friends. But I
think life there is better than in Iceland right now. The
pay is better, you get more free time and your private life
is respected. I have a good feeling about this...”
Words
Hildur Knútsdóttir
Illustration
Lóa Hjálmýsdóttir
They Are being watched.
And killed