Outrageous: Japan Resumes Commercial Whaling

Photo credit: Wikipedia

Despite global outcry, the Japanese whaling research group has announced it will resume commercial whaling in the Antarctic Ocean in early 2016.

The resumption of whaling is in violation of the International Court of Justice’s March 2014 ruling that stated Japan’s hunts in the name of research are not justified because of the complete lack of research.

Last year, the Japanese whaling fleet killed around 1,000 whales in the Antarctic Ocean.  This year, the Japanese have announced they will only kill 333 whales.

What is that?!?  The Japanese whalers are promising to be two-thirds less illegal?!?

There is no justifiable reason for the Japanese whalers to be hunting threatened and endangered species.

Greg Hunt, Australia’s Minster for the Environment said, “there is no need to kill whales in the name of research. Non-lethal research techniques are the most effective and efficient method of studying all cetaceans.”

The precedent set by the Japanese is a dangerous one.  It means that even when countries make agreements to protect a species and agree to rulings by the International Court of Justice, that if one decides otherwise, conservation and preservation take a back seat to commercial interests.

The Japanese aren’t alone, there are other counties that have continued to hunt whales. Iceland ships have embarked on whale hunts, sparking the ire of hackers from Anonymous.

Since their declaration, Anonymous has taken down five Icelandic government websites.

While it maybe cathartic to hack a website, illegal activities like hacking does nothing to save whales or further conservation.

We must work together, united to help educate countries where commercial whaling is still happening and bring an end to this barbaric practice once and for all.

Via: Science Alert