Whale Hunting Protects
Marine Life - and Japanese Culture
"The
U.S., The Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand are all anti-whaling nations,
but it should nevertheless be possible to cooperate based on a shared stance
against violence. … We need to think of clever ideas for making whale meat
appealing to young people who never tasted it. Japan’s earnest wish to resume whaling
along its coasts is deeply rooted in a desire to pass down cultural traditions
related to whaling techniques and gastronomy."
Bob Barker: It was his namesake, 'The Bob Barker', that convinced Japan to cancel its yearly whale hunt. Barker is one of The Sea Shepherd's biggest financial backers.
This season’s Antarctic
research whaling mission has been reluctantly cut short due to rampant sabotage
by the American anti-whaling organization, Sea Shepherd. Agriculture Minister
Michihiko Kano
explained, “in order to ensure the safety of the fleet and crews, an early
withdrawal has become unavoidable.” Although Sea Shepherd has been actively disrupting
research whaling since 2005, this is the first time that the government has discontinued
a research mission.
Japanese research whaling is
a legitimate program operated in accordance with the International
Convention for the Regulation of Whaling as recognized by members of
the International Whaling Commission (IWC). In addition, Japanese research aims
to further our scientific understanding of whale ecology and marine resources and
has been highly evaluated by the Scientific Committee of the IWC. It is therefore
absolutely ludicrous to block with brute force, scientific activities of such
merit. Furthermore, the use of violence has put human lives in jeopardy and cannot
be condoned under any circumstances. Sea Shepherd’s obstructive activities have been escalating wildly, as it has introduced new tactics every year. The
government’s decision to curtail this year's mission is understandable, given
that human lives are at risk from these unscrupulous attacks.
On the other hand, there has
been criticism that this sends the wrong message to the world. Japan could be
perceived as "giving in to violence." For this reason, it was appropriate
for Chief Cabinet Secretary Yukio Edano to uphold plans to resume Antarctic
research whaling next season. The question now is how to put adequate measures
in place to allow Japan to safely carry out its legitimate activities.
Whaling:
Precious cultural and gastronomic tradition, or the
murder of an advanced animal species?
The
governments of The Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand enable Sea Shepherd
to operate by permitting the group to register their ships and use their ports.
Japan has asked these countries to put controls in place to prevent a
recurrence of these disturbances. In fact, the government has repeatedly made
such requests, which have gone virtually unheeded.
The
government, in addition to consulting with the U.S., must begin urgent talks
with the three countries to implement effective regulatory enforcement and
prevention of sabotage. The United States, The Netherlands, Australia and New
Zealand are all anti-whaling nations, but it should nevertheless be possible to
cooperate based on a shared stance against violence. It is also imperative that
Japan continues to emphasize the importance of whaling for the collection of scientific
data necessary for managing marine resources.
The
pros and cons of whaling should by rights be debated within the IWC. At last
year’s general meeting, a proposal was made for Japan to accept whaling along Japanese
coasts alone in exchange for a large reduction in research whaling. Japan
indicated it would oblige, but the anti-whaling countries, including Australia,
pushed for a total ban on Antarctic whaling, so the issue ended in stalemate. Japan
should try and reach a compromise along the lines of a 10-year interim suspension.
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
It
is important to note that the whaling issue is not simply a matter of whales.
They consume vast amounts of fish and shellfish, sitting as whales do, on top
of the marine food chain. We should encourage debate on how best to maintain balance
in the marine ecosystem and look at the issue in terms of limited global food
resources.
The
majority of the cost of research whaling is met by the sale of a byproduct:
whale meat. In recent years, the number of captured whales has diminished as a
result of interference, and combined with low demand, it has been financially difficult
to fund research whaling. The slump in consumption is largely attributable to
the moratorium on commercial whaling. At present, we need to think of clever
ideas for making whale meat appealing to young people who never tasted it. Japan’s
earnest wish to resume whaling along its coasts is deeply rooted in a desire to
pass down cultural traditions related to whaling techniques and gastronomy.
This is another message that needs to be communicated both at home and abroad.
