Commercial whalehunt is likely to exist in Japan in the name of scientific whalehunt. The Japanese government has shown no indication of any sort of ban on the annual whaling in response to the proposal by the International Whaling Commission (IWC). On the contrary, Japan has threatened to resume it for all the time to come. Japan’s arguments over this whaling issue are –
– The whaling on the Southern Ocean is meant for various scientific researches.
– Many fishing communities are entirely dependent on it.
– Whaling has long been continue to exist as a cultural tradition
– There is a misconception regarding the whale population. Whales are not in peril.
– Japan also suspects that acceptance to this proposal may lead to legal action against the extensive tuna-fishing activities as well.
On the other hand, the environment activists say that Japan’s Cetacean Research Institute has produced no significant information about whales, even after two decades of data collection. Moreover, the meat from this so-called researches are sold openly in the market. Japan’s reaction to this issue has been so reluctant that some even fear that the commission may come to a total collapse if not made strong enough deal with it. Australia is taking the leadership position in this anti-whaling movement. An interim talk by the commission is going to be held in Santiago this week and Japan had already threatened to leave the meeting.
The Japanese government and the IWC activists seem to stand at the two extreme and distant poles of the world. The debate is going to last long for sure.
Source: timesonline