Japan is to withdraw from the International Whaling Commission (IWC) and resume commercial whaling next year, a report claimed on Thursday, in a move that drew condemnation from Australia, with other anti-whaling nations expected to follow suit. Japan will inform the IWC of its decision by the end of the year, Kyodo news agency said, […]
Tag: minke whale
Japan Has Killed Over 50 Minke Whales in a Protected Area of Antarctica
Japanese whalers have already harpooned and slaughtered over 50 minke whales this year in an area of the Ross Sea in Antarctica that is off-limits to fishing. They have done this by labeling their slaughter for “scientific purposes.” The hunting of whales for profit has been banned since 1986 but Japan, Iceland and Norway have […]
POLL: Should Iceland be sanctioned for continuing to slaughter whales?
Iceland’s lone whaling company’s ongoing defiance of an international ban on commercial whaling is outrageous and offence enough as it continues to target endangered fin and minke whales, but now it’s reached a new low after having illegally slaughtered the first blue whale in decades. After a two year break from whaling, Hvalur hf announced […]
POLL: Should Japan be sanctioned for killing 120 pregnant minke whales?
More than 120 pregnant whales were killed during Japan’s annual “research” hunt in the Southern Ocean last summer, a new report has revealed. Of the 333 minke whales caught during the controversial 12-week expedition, 181 were female – including 53 immature ones. Figures show that of the 128 mature female whales caught in the hunt, […]
POLL: Should Iceland be sanctioned for resuming whaling?
Icelandic fishermen will resume their hunt for the endangered fin whale this year after a two-year pause and have set a target of 191 kills for the season. An apparent loosening of Japanese regulations on Icelandic exports had made the resumption of the hunting commercially viable again, the country’s only fin whaling company, Hvalur, announced. […]
POLL: Should Norway be sanctioned for boosting its whaling quota?
Norway has announced a 28% increase of its annual whaling quota to 1,278 whales in a bid to revive the declining hunt amid international controversy. Whalers have for several years failed to meet the quotas set by Oslo and the number of whaling boats has plunged. “I hope the quota and the merging of fishing […]
How Sea Shepherd lost battle against Japan’s whale hunters in Antarctic
A fleet of Japanese ships is currently hunting minke whales in the Southern Ocean. It is a politically incendiary practice: the waters around Antarctica were long ago declared a whale sanctuary, but the designation has not halted Japan’s whalers, who are continuing a tradition of catching whales “for scientific research” in the region. In the […]
POLL: Should Japan be sanctioned for slaughtering dolphins and whales?
Taiji is still in darkness when a dozen men gather at the quayside and warm themselves over a brazier. While the rest of the town sleeps, they sip from cans of hot coffee, smoke cigarettes and talk in hushed tones. As soon as the sun edges above the peninsula, they take to their boats, steering […]