Anti-whaling activists say it with love

When Greenpeace Pacific activists presented a Valentine’s Day card to the diplomatic corps at the Japanese embassy in Suva with the theme, ‘We love Japan but whaling breaks our hearts,’ they were adopting a different tack to save the giant mammals.

Wednesday’s symbolic gesture, designed to draw attention to the campaign of the anti-whaling activists against Japanese whaling fleets on the high seas, comes even as Greenpeace continues its November 2005 ‘Defending Our Oceans’ anti-whaling campaign in the southern ocean. Greenpeace Australia Pacific Oceans team leader Nilesh Goundar said that many species of whales were endangered. “The Western and Central Pacific Ocean is a breeding ground for nine species of great whales and an important part of the Pacific natural and cultural heritage,” said Goundar.

Tensions are high between anti-whalers and Japanese whaling fleets after an anti-whaling boat belonging to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society collided with a Japanese whaling ship in the Antarctica last weekend.

In the Pacific, concerns about Japanese intentions heightened in 2006 after it won a vote to oppose the 1986 ban on commercial whaling at the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting, held in St Kitts and Nevis. Following its triumph, Japan said it would expand its “scientific research” programme the following year by killing 1,300 whales, including 25 humpback and 25 fin whales for the first time.

Six Pacific island nations voted with Japan at the June meeting. Their vote was seen as a major blow, especially when in 2003, 11 Pacific nations sealed a pact creating a 28,520,000 sq km whale sanctuary in the Pacific.

Greenpeace has accused Japan of using aid to gain votes, noting that it had pledged over one million dollars to Tuvalu, a pro-whaling IWC member, and had reached similar deals with Nauru and Kiribati. While the 2006 meeting vote fell short of the 75 per cent needed to overturn the IWF moratorium, the pro-whaling bloc still regarded it as a major victory over the anti-whaling lobby. The resolution, which passed by 33 votes to 32, said the moratorium was no longer necessary and blamed whales for depleting fish stocks. Goundar said there was no evidence that killing whales would make any noticeable difference to fishing yields. “The whales which breed in the South Pacific are mainly baleen whales. They are filter feeders, which mean they do not have teeth and feed primarily on krill.”

According to Greenpeace, over 87 countries run whale-watching operations around the world. This generates one billion dollars in revenue worldwide each year. “Whales are an important part of the eco-system and whale-watching could also take on greater economic significance,” Goundar said. He clarified that the Valentine’s Day campaign was not related to the growing tensions between Japanese whaling fleets and anti-whaling activists on the high seas. The Greenpeace ship ‘Esperanza’ is currently in the Southern Ocean, tracking the whaling fleet. The expedition is the last leg of the Defending Our Oceans campaign. Goundar said activists have prevented 82 whales from being killed, and also forced out the companies funding the hunt by taking peaceful direct action. — IPS