The Japanese whale hunt is an act of war on the world’s natural heritage and an act of war against the economics of Australia.
On 19th November 2007, the Japanese whaling fleet, including the 8000 ton Nisshin Maru and three chaser vessels, left southern Japan for its biggest hunt since commercial whaling was officially banned more than two decades ago. Adding to its annual haul this season, they are also aiming for humpback whales from Australian waters, escalating the environmental dispute over whaling to new heights.
Humpback whales have not been legally hunted in the Antarctic since 1963 and never since the moratorium on commercial whaling came into effect in 1986. This is the Japanese at their worst. Under the guise of scientific research 50 humpbacks have been added to the Japanese target, with 50 giant fin whales, and up to 935 minkes. The Japanese are indeed reverting to a bygone dark era. Real scientists don't need to kill whales to study them. This is really commercial whaling badly dressed up as science.
Japan’s Institute of Cetacean Research disclosed that the hunt would take place in Antarctic waters south-west of Australia. This means that many of the whales are most likely to be slaughtered in an Australian whale sanctuary off the coast of the Australian Antarctic Territory. The humpbacks would come mainly from stocks that breed and migrate off the east and west coasts of Australia. The London Panel, a team of legal experts assembled by the International Fund for Animal Welfare, has advised that the Japanese plan to kill humpback whales breaches international wildlife trade law. Humpback whales are listed as endangered under CITES - the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, which protects the humpback from trade. In this case the panel says, "trade" includes Japanese whaling boats catching and landing whales in international waters. However prosecution or any robust defensive action by the Australian authorities at least up till now appears to be highly unlikely and cursory.
Nevertheless Kevin Rudd, the new Prime Minister elect of Australia said that he will send the Navy and RAAF planes to monitor the Japanese whaling ships. While seemingly an ineffective effort but at the very least, a demonstration of force compared to the ousted Prime Minister John Howard who in political ambiguity, waffled, "I totally disagree with what the Japanese are doing in relation to whaling and our responses have got to be completely in accordance with Japanese law and every time I meet a Japanese prime minister I raise this issue and I'll continue to do so.” Ugh...Japanese Law in Australian waters? This is a blatant case of a government saying one thing - that they're opposed to whaling but doing far less than is satisfactory to try and stop it. At least the ex Australian foreign affairs Minister Alexander Downer was honest about it, stating that the federal government does not want to take action against Japan over whaling if that would harm Australian interests.
It will be difficult for any reasonable person to understand the justification or lack thereof in this instance, as the whaling is conducted in Australian Exclusive Economic Zone. All Australia would need to do is send a warship and demand that the Japanese leave or be apprehended. The Japanese whaling industry is in defiance of both Australian and International law - killing a whale is similar to a poacher killing an elephant, koala or a panda.
An outspoken Yoji Kita from the southern whaling town of Taiji, Japan, strangely but correctly pointed out that by global standards, there are lots of double standards. Much less to killing a whale, it is illegal for Australians to swim with whales. This law is vigilantly enforced in Australian waters and is a jail-able offence. Apparently this is not so for the Japanese.
Remember, Steve Irwin, the much loved Crocodile Hunter with carte blanche to get up close and be smothered by any animal of any size, even the endangered ones? Well, even for Steve, in 2004 he was subjected to an Australian Commonwealth Government investigation for a criminal breach of wildlife laws after allegedly clowning around with whales and penguins while filming a documentary in Antarctica. Under Australian law, interacting with Antarctic wildlife is strictly forbidden, attracting fines of up to $1 million and two years jail. At that time Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for the Environment and Heritage Dr. Sharman Stone confirmed that the Government had granted Irwin's company a permit to film whales, but she added "It certainly wouldn't have said you can jump in and pat them,". Dr Stone’s comment also implied that though many countries shared jurisdiction over Antarctica, Australians working there are bound by Australian laws. Well apparently not so for killing whales and if one is Japanese. Of course, they make the Sonys, Canons and Hondas.
It is crystal clear that the governments involved are not being transparent or sensible at addressing the issue nor have the gumption to enforce any effective action such as economic sanction or use of force to dissuade the whalers. It is up to us the average folks who proclaimed to be disgusted to take a stand and be heard. In a nutshell, Japanese products should be boycotted until Japan stops killing humpback whales. Apparently only 11% of Japanese are pro whaling, and 14% are anti-whaling with the vast majority sitting quietly in abstinence. Perhaps by our standing up, vocalizing and even boycotting Japanese products till the whaling stops may persuade this majority to join forces and push their authorities to stop this whaling massacre under the guise of scientific research. OceanNEnvironment
The TERRORISM against Whales
Eco-tourism is quite the buzz word these days; a response to the growing awareness to conserve and preserve the earth’s ecology. Destructive practices and habits have been turned around through Eco-tourism. The Butanding Festival in the Philippines celebrated the hunt and killing of the whale shark. Today tourists flock there to swim with them instead. The goal in the end appears to be ‘economics.’ From the basic need to survive to the acquisitive nature to be extremely wealthy, this common denominator has been used to destroy as well as restore.
As the battle wages on, the competition gets more aggressive and the spirit of winning leads to some bizarre strategies. Morals and realities of finite elements get forgotten in the short term causing much long term damage. Nature’s genetics of the hunter and the hunted, the predator and prey is tampered or ‘new’ enemies created and the ecological balance begins to wither one or the other into extinction. The seeds of Eco-terrorism are unwittingly sown.
‘Eco’ or otherwise, the ‘terrorist’s’ main weapon is the total disregard for human civility. They know, if the non-terrorist world gives up ‘civility’ then, we will all be terrorists like them. And as long as non-terrorists continue to practice and remain civil, the terrorist will always have the upper hand. It’s like the inveterate queue jumper and the annoying road hog who care little for common courtesy and seem to always get the upper hand, leaving the courteous bloke at the loser’s end.
Many are indeed baffled that a trespassing vessel was not at all cautioned or arrested when encroaching another’s territorial waters. Aussie courtesy being exploited or just political apathy and hidden agendas, one wonders. Even more baffling and intriguing is the association of the Japanese Institute of Cetacean Research to the Nisshin Maru and the need to kill the cetaceans to ‘study’ them. Is this an economically motivated exploit or are there other more than economic motivators? The International Whaling Commission’s fundamental role of seeking common ground for the common good of all through respectful compromise for the beholders of the various views and interest groups appears to have suffered a hard blow for the moment. If it does not recover, then eco-terrorism’s emergence and growth is inevitable. If the interest groups and the beholders of the different views keep hyping and rousing up the accusation campaign with barbs and arrows, then most certainly one or some will perish and become extinct; and the terrorist knows, that so long as civility remains, they will always have the upper hand.
Although in the beginning the ‘economics’ appeared as the ‘common denominator’ perhaps in this instance, there is more than ‘economics’; perhaps it’s about values, ideology, tradition, culture, generations of harboured anti-americanism etc ? And we know from experience that against the ‘hara-kiri’ terrorist, the only hope is to prevent the tipping of ‘conversions’. Whatever our sentiments, are we prepared to suspend them and move towards an equitable and respectful solution, or remain entrenched in misplaced righteousness, and unwittingly nurture the habitat for ‘eco terrorism?
OG, from its inception has categorically positioned itself to favour effectiveness more than blind or misplaced and evocative righteousness. It firmly believes that chest thumping activism loaded with sentiments does not resolve issues, neither does proving one party being more right than the other. Conservation is not a glory contest for the more dedicated or ardent conservationist. It’s about persuasion, it’s about providing useful and truthful information; it’s about winning hearts and transformation through respect and recognition of the other’s position. And there the challenge for the undefiled conservationists beckons. Joe Moreira, Editor, Ocean Geographic
The Japanese whale hunt is an act of war on the world’s natural heritage and an act of war against the economics of Australia. Hundreds and thousands of passionate people, scientists and wildlife societies spend millions of dollars and uncountable research hours to preserve the last remaining whales for future generations. The Japanese whalers are out to destroy these efforts is disrespectful. It is an act of war against humanity. We cannot sit back and do nothing. It is obligatory for us to demand on those in power to insist the Japanese to stop their whale hunt immediately. Michael AW, Director, OceanNEnvironment
What do we think about the recent news that Japan has expanded their completely faux "research quota" and are now including humpback whales? It is a sickening display of government and cultural ambivalence to conservation. Japan leads the world with some of the greenest innovations this century has seen but then reaches backward in a barbaric display of in your face anti-marine conservation to slaughter long lived social marine mammals that exist by a thread on this planet. We are mad as hell but moreover disappointed in the lack of motivation of a supposedly enlightened society and citizenry to end the practice of whaling. Does the Toyota Prius have a harpoon option? Jennifer Hayes & David Doubilet – National Geographic Photographer in Residence
I am outraged by the Japanese action, which is equivalent to an act of war against the environment, and against a benign intelligent race that has been conditioned by decades of whalewatching to treat humans and their vessels as harmless and friendly, and is helpless against the killing implements of industrial whaling. It is also an act of economic war against Australia's tourism industry, to which you would expect Australia to respond with economic sanctions at the least. You can count on my support for your campaign to show our outrage, and push our governments to exert some serious pressure on Japan. Doug Perrine, Wildlife Photographer
There is no excuse for Japanese whaling anywhere, but when it happens in Australia's backyard you might hope to have stronger responses. Boycotts brought on by Japanese whaling have been tried before if I remember correctly. It is obvious that the Japanese will not be easily shamed or dissuaded, and Australia itself will have to show more backbone to protect the whales in its waters. Emory Kristof, Deep Sea Explorer
I believe I speak for my 600,000 collectors throughout the US and 100 countries around the world when I declare a worldwide boycott on all Japanese companies that enable the killing of whales. It should be an embarrassment to the people of Japan that a culture so reliant on the health and vitality of the oceans allow the killing of an animal that is now protected by most of the nations in the world. It is now time for the Japanese people to take a stand against the minority population that continue this barbaric killing of our planet’s greatest mammals. It is now time for the Japanese to declare a permanent band on whale hunting, now and in the future. WYLAND, Marine Artist
Whaling is a barbaric activity which serves no worthwhile purpose. It is time for our new government to make a stand to protect the whales in Australia’s Antarctic territory. We should not have to pay lip service to diplomacy. The time for action is now. Christopher Lee, Editor Emeritus OG.
This hunt is going to be a gruesome "scientific" experiment in how long these amazing animals may take to die. For the Japanese whaling fleets to be able to come here and kill our whales is barbaric. We are starting to show a sign of how healthy the population of humpbacks has become; a female and her calf paid a short visit to Sydney Harbour not too long ago. They're targeting endangered species in a whale sanctuary. I support the Call for Action whole heartedly; It is a shame there are not more people like you around. Jayne Jenkins, Naturalist
It all boils down to dollars. The only way a government will take action for an environmental cause will depend on the power of the commercial interests that impact on a legislature. If our own lobbies for our environmental concerns are powerful enough to convince our government - or any government - to economically put pressure on miscreant governments that are supporting the commercial lobbies we may win some points. When has it ever been different? If I am not mistaken our side convinced the Equadorian government to control the commercial pillage of the Galapagos marine environment. "MoneyTalks". Ecotourism had become a big and valuable factor in the economy. Pressure through trade embargoes can serve the cause. Stan Waterman, Underwater film producer and photographer, Winner of 5 Emmy awards
Shark Finning maybe legal in Australia’s Great Barrier Reef
We are speechless, befuddled… dumbfounded by the Queensland Government proposal, to legitimize one of the most unsustainable forms of fishing on the planet - shark fin fishing, exerts that with over 90% of the world's sharks and other big fish gone from our oceans, this project is unsustainable, unethical and will be flatly rejected by the Australian public. If and when the Queensland Government’s proposal comes into effect, specific fishing licenses for shark fin fishing will be issued, which will entrench the practice for years to come. It will also legitimize shark finning in the Great Barrier Reef, a World Heritage Area and in the Marine Parks of Moreton Bay and the Great Sandy Straits
