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| Japan told to halt Antarctic whaling by international court | Japan told to halt Antarctic whaling by international court |
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| The International Court of Justice has ordered a temporary halt toJapan's annual slaughter of whales in the southern ocean afterconcluding that the hunts are not, as Japan claims, conducted forscientific research.The UN court's decision, by a 12-4 majority among a panel of judges,casts serious doubt over the long-term future of the jewel in thecrown of Japan's controversial whaling programme.It also marks a dramatic victory for the Australian government, whosefour-year campaign to ban the hunts rested on whether it couldconvince the court that Japan was using scientific research as a coverfor commercial whaling.In its 2010 application to the court, Australia accused Japan offailing to "observe in good faith the zero catch limit in relation tothe killing of whales".Under the International Whaling Commission's 1986 ban on commercialwhaling, Japan was permitted to kill a certain number of whales everyyear for what it called scientific research.The sale of meat from the hunts in restaurants and supermarkets, whilenot illegal, prompted accusations from Australia and other anti-whaling nations that Japan was cloaking a commercial operation "in the lab coat of science".In a lengthy ruling, the presiding judge in the Hague, Peter Tomka,said Japan had failed to prove that its pursuit of hundreds of mainlyminke whales in Antarctic waters every winter – under a programmeknown as Jarpa II – was for scientific purposes."The evidence does not establish that the programme's design andimplementation are reasonable in relation to achieving its statedobjectives," Tomka said."The court concludes that the special permits granted by Japan for thekilling, taking and treating of whales in connection with Jarpa II arenot for purposes of scientific research," he added, before orderingJapan to cease its whaling programme "with immediate effect".Campaigners welcomed the ruling. "This is an historic decision whichlays to rest, once and for all, the grim travesty of Japan's so-called'scientific' whaling and exposes it to the world as the blatantfalsehood it clearly is," said Clare Perry, head of the cetaceanscampaign at the UK-based Environmental Investigation Agency."With this ruling, Japan must clearly cease its whaling activities inthe Antarctic."The court ruled that Japan had not complied with its obligationscovering scientific research as set out in article 8 of the 1946International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling.Japan, though, had maintained that its annual slaughter of 850 minkewhales and up to 50 endangered fin whales every year was necessary to examine the age, health, feeding habits, exposure to toxins and other characteristics of whale populations, with a view to the possibleresumption of sustainable commercial whaling.Officials in Tokyo said the data could not be obtained throughnon-lethal methods.Tomka, however, said Japan had not offered sufficient scientificjustification for the slaughter of a large number of minke whales,while failing to kill enough fin and humpback whales to be of anyscientific value. It had also failed to explore the possibility ofgathering certain scientific data without resorting to killing themammals, he added.In its defence, Japan cited only two peer-reviewed scientific papersrelating to its program from 2005 to the present, during which it hasharpooned 3,600 minke whales, a handful of fin whales, and no humpback whales.Tuesday's decision, though, leaves room for Japan to revamp itswhaling programme to meet an international whaling treaty'srequirements for scientific whaling.And it does not mean the end to all whaling. Japan hunts a muchsmaller number of whales in the northern Pacific, while Norway andIceland continue to kill whales for their commercial value, indefiance of the IWC ban.Japan has slaughtered more than 10,000 whales since the IWC moratorium came into effect, according to the Australian government.Japan had questioned the court's right to rule on the case, but saidbefore the ruling that it would accept its verdict. The court'sjudgements are binding and cannot be appealed.Monday's ruling is unlikely to have much impact on the Japanesepublic, whose appetite for whale meat has declined dramatically sincethe immediate postwar period.In recent years, stocks of whale meat have remained unsold, withalmost 4,600 tonnes stored in port freezers at the end of 2012,according to Japanese government statistics.Campaigners said they hoped the verdict would result in a permanentend to Japan's whaling programme in the southern ocean."The myth that this hunt was in any way scientific can now bedismissed once and for all," said Willie MacKenzie, oceans campaignerfor Greenpeace UK. "We urge Japan to abide by this decision and notattempt to continue whaling through any newly invented loopholes." | |