A key decision emerging from the International Whaling Commission could curtail Japan's exploitation of an exception to a ban on commercial whaling, which it claims is for "scientific research."
Image: picture-alliance/WILDLIFE
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The International Whaling Commission on Thursday (27.10.2016) passed, by simple majority, a resolution to more stringently review permits for Japan's "scientific" whale-hunting program.
Japan is accused of abusing an exemption to a 30-year moratorium on commercial hunting of whales, by continuing to hunt whales for "scientific research."
Japan kills about 330 whales each year for "research." However, meat from the whales ends up in supermarkets and restaurants, and only very few peer-reviewed papers have emerged from the hunt.
Under the new rules, Japan must now seek approval from the IWC to hunt whales for so-called scientific research.
Previously, a country had only to submit its scientific whaling program. The new process means that a scientific committee must first review the program - before it then goes to a working group and the IWC confirms its validity.
"The International Whaling Commission can now harpoon any fake science programs aimed at hunting whales for meat before they begin," said Luca Nicotra, a senior campaigner at the advocacy group Avaaz.
At the IWC's 66th meeting, which continues through Friday in Slovenia, the resolution passed with 34 votes in favor to 17 against.
"The resolution on special permit whaling has no power to bind Japan or any other party," wrote Glenn Inwood, a consultant and official speaker for Japan at the IWC, in an email to DW. He also accused the EU of stacking the vote with its 28 members.
Indeed, since the IWC lacks the power to sanction countries that violate the resolution, Japan could continue with its whaling.
"We actually don't expect them to adhere to this resolution," Astrid Fuchs of Whale and Dolphin Conservation told DW. Supporting countries see the resolution as a statement - and a potential tool. If Japan does continue to flaunt international decisions, she said, "countries will have to step up their diplomatic or economic pressure on Japan."
Earlier this week, the IWC rejected a proposal for a new whale sanctuary, after a strong lobbying effort on the part of Japan.
In 2014, the International Court of Justice ruled that there was no scientific case for Japan's program of "lethal research" in the Southern Ocean, and ordered Tokyo to stop.
After the court ruling, Japan cancelled its hunts for 2014 and 2015, only to resume in the following year under a new program.
In its defense, Japan says its whaling program is sustainable. The whales it hunts - minke whales - are relatively abundant, with a global population of around half a million. Conservationists counter that this population, particularly in Antarctic regions, is declining - although there is insufficient data on this front.
Japan resumes whale hunt
In 2014, the International Court of Justice banned Japan from further whaling activities, questioning the scientific justification for the hunt. But as of April 10, 2015, four ships have left port, off to kill whales.
Image: picture-alliance/Robert Harding
Harpoons ready
As of Friday (10.04.2015), four Japanese whaling ships are on the way into the Pacific. By the end of this May, they may have killed up to 51 minke whales. Officials argue that the hunt is necessary for research into the effects whales have on coastal fishing. Just one year ago, the International Court of Justice in The Hague banned Japan from continuing its whale hunt.
Image: KAZUHIRO NOGI/AFP/Getty Images
Ban ignored
The hunt for the endangered sea mammals has been outlawed since 1986 - but Norwegian, Icelandic and Japanese companies continue to hunt whales. The Japanese, in particular, argue that their whaling program is conducted for purposes of scientific research. But Japan is also hunting ever less and less: this past January, two whaling ships set out to counting whale and take tissue samples.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Japan v. whales
For 20 years, Australia tried unsuccessfully to persuade Japan to stop its whaling program through diplomatic channels - and finally took the country to court in 2013. In Late March 2014, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague ruled Japan's whaling program is not for scientific purposes, and ordered a temporary stay.
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo
Endangered species
Whale stocks have stabilized since the ban was implemented 27 years ago. However, more than half of the 13 great whale species are classified as endangered or vulnerable. This includes blue whales, fin whales, sei whales, southern right whales and sperm whales. Whales can grow to be 33 meters (108 feet) long and weigh 190 tonnes (209 tons) - making them the largest animals on Earth.
Image: DW
Japanese whalers
Hunted down in the name of science, the whales' meat is later sold to stores and specialty restaurants. The Tokyo-based Institute of Cetacean Research was founded exactly one year after the 1986 moratorium issued by the International Whaling Commission.
Image: Greenpeace/Kate Davison
A Japanese tradition
Whale meat has long been on dinner plates in Japan. Especially after World War II, the population of the island nation depended on whale meat. Schools and canteens cherished it because it was cheaper than beef. But times have changed - and now whale meat accounts for only 1 percent of meat consumed in Japan.
Image: gemeinfrei
Dog food
You can find up to 7,000 tons of whale meat stored in Japanese warehouses. Due to a lack of buyers, a Japanese firm had fin whale meat processed into dog food. However, protests by international animal rights groups made the company announce that it was discontinuing production of the dog treats.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
Act of defiance
Despite all this, many Japanese still support whale hunting and decry the actions of environmental campaigners like Greenpeace as eco-terrorism. Japan's government has refused to give in to international pressure, and has been subsidizing whaling programs since 1988 with around 800 million yen (6.3 million euros) a year.
Image: picture-alliance/ dpa
Japan not alone
Iceland and Norway also have whaling programs in defiance of the ban. Both countries lodged objections to the moratorium, and don't feel the need to abide by it.
Image: picture-alliance / dpa
Legal whaling
Indigenous people such as the Chukchi in Russia or the Inuit in Canada are officially entitled to hunt whales as long as they don't do it for commercial purposes. For these people, whaling is a tradition that goes back hundreds of years. The sea mammals provide them with meat, oil and bones. Every part of the animal is used.
Image: picture-alliance/empics
Sea Shepherd
Environmental groups played an important role in issuance of the whaling ban. For decades, they led spectacular campaigns to draw the world's attention to the issue of whale hunting. The organization Sea Shepherd is known for its controversial and aggressive approach to protecting the giants of the sea.
Image: cc-by-nc-sa3.0/guano
Watching instead of hunting
Many countries that used to have whaling programs are now in the business of whale watching. Some of the whale watchers in Japan and Norway are former whale hunters who now share their knowledge with tourists. Also in Japan, an ever-increasing number of citizens would rather see these animals in the wild than on their dinner plates.
