SYDNEY, Australia (21 Dec 2007) — The Japanese whaling fleet has called-off its hunt for endangered humpbacks after mounting international pressure and passionate criticism from Australia. The U-turn comes as the fleet, after just a few weeks at sea, was understood to be only days away from catching its first humpback whale for more than 40 years. The surprise decision will not, however, put a stop to Japan's traditional annual hunt for minke whales – plans to land a record haul of 1,000 minkes remain unaltered. The climb-down follows a threat by Australia that it would consider taking Japan to an international court in an effort to stop all hunting once and for all. The whaling ships set sail from Shimonoseki in late November and the Japanese authorities astonished activists across the globe by revealing that as well as the usual annual catch of minkes, they were hoping to land around 50 humpback and fin whales for the first time since the 1960s. Japan has grown accustomed to drawing the fury of conservationists for its determination to hunt whales, but the decision to hunt humpbacks unleashed an unexpected wave of condemnation. The Australian Government, which has been by far the most vocal in its attack on the Japanese whalers, upped the ante earlier this week when it said it would deploy a fisheries patrol vessel to spy on the whaling fleet. Australia said it would also make a commercial flight over the Southern Ocean to photograph the Japanese fleet as it conducts its hunt. The pictures, some believe, could provide sufficient evidence to build a court case against whaling. Previous sabre-rattling on the issue has included hints from Canberra that the Australian military might be brought-in to patrol the whaling-grounds of the Southern Ocean. But Nobutaka Machimura, the Japanese government's chief spokesman, said today that the pursuit of humpbacks would be suspended while talks to reform the International Whaling Commission were under way. The issue has already entered the realm of high diplomacy, with Mr Machimura expressing the hope that the antipathy over whaling would not harm relations between Tokyo and Canberra. | | Japan says it is calling off the hunt to maintain good relations with Australia. But it still plans to kill over 950 minke whales. Japan's Foreign Minister, Masahiko Komura, today repeated Tokyo's position that the hunt is in line with international treaties: "I would like to speak with (Australia's) foreign minister in some form soon," he said, "we will try to seek each other's understanding." Also unaffected is Japan's staunch defence of the hunt as "scientific" – a euphemism that exploits a legal loophole and effectively allows commercial whaling to be undertaken on a grand scale. Before Friday's U-turn, Japan argued that whale stocks were easily large enough to survive a cull of the size it was planning. Estimates by the American Cetacean Society suggest a worldwide population of between 30,000 to 40,000 humpback whales: the World Conservation Union places the species two rungs below the highest risk of extinction. Japan's position on whaling, say government insiders, stems from a dread of having its activities on the high seas dictated by the outside world. Among the biggest concerns is that if it concedes too much ground on whaling, the activists' next target will be Japan's tuna fleets. SOURCE - Times OnlineSCUBA FORUMDISCUSS THIS TOPIC - Dive in and have your say at Scuba Forum |
