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Japanese Whaling: Opinion

Green Guru — Wed, 23 Mar 2011 00:05:32 +0000

Australia is one of the persistent activists against Japanese whaling. For a long time now, there have been tensions between the two nations because of the issue of Japan’s whaling expeditions in the waters of Antarctic. It reached to a point where Australia filed a lawsuit at the International Court of Justice regarding Japan’s “research whaling”. Yet, Japan never backed down in the battle. Japan claims that they kill whales for research purposes but apparently it was discovered that some were used and sold as food.

This year, activists from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society harassed the whalers by throwing rancid butter and paint on board the ‘research ships’ and tangled ropes in their propellers in the hopes of stopping or slowing down the Japanese’ hunt for 800 whales. And indeed, the Japanese government halted the annual whaling season and returned home with less than 200 whales. The success of the activists was due to the technological advancements they’ve acquired through the participation and help of Australian showbiz celebrities who offered financial assistance in support of their anti-whaling advocacy.

Another environmental organization, Greenpeace, is a strong activist against Japanese Whaling. For many years, they have been chasing fleets of whaling ships to prevent whalers from getting their prized catch. Although many have criticized their actions, the organization is firm in their belief that they exist to defend the whales and not to attack and cause harm to the whalers. Recently, Greenpeace has launched a public relations campaign in Japan to convince and empower the Japanese to also advocate against the whaling projects.

The Australian government also took its part in the issue. Australia attempted to make a portion of Antarctica as a whale sanctuary. But practically speaking, the no one is a legitimate owner of the ocean and therefore Australia cannot claim rights and control over it. That is why the best thing that they could do about it for now is to challenge the Japanese whaling industries in courts and influencing the decisions of the International Whaling Commission.

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