As the Japanese continue to their whaling practices under the premise that they are studying whales through lethal means is coming under more and more scrutiny, another blow was dealt to their argument with a new study that states that Minke whales are not at all preventing larger whales from growing in numbers.
Commercial whaling was banned by the International Whaling Commission in 1986 with a loophole for scientific research. The Japanese have exploited that to continue whaling, keeping most of the quotas to the Minke whale population using the excuse that Minke whales are so abundant that they were keeping other larger baleen whales from bouncing back in numbers.
Stanford study opposes minke culling
"We can ascertain that today's populations of minke whales are roughly similar in size to populations prior to early 20th century commercial whaling of larger species," Stanford researcher Kristen Ruegg said. "The research suggests that direct competition for food is not keeping the large whale populations from recovering."
Australia has been threatening legal action over Japans's continuing whaling under the thin veil of scientific research. And even as the international community urges the IWC to close the loophole, the Japanese continue to buy votes in the commission. So many other Countries are able to conduct their scientific research without having to use lethal meals of study.
Australia threatens Japan over whaling program
SYDNEY — Australia's prime minister threatened legal action against Japan on Friday if it does not stop its research whaling program that kills up to 1,000 whales a year.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's comments came as the Australian Broadcasting Corp. quoted Japanese Foreign Minister Katsuya Okada as saying in an interview that Japan has no plans to halt its killing of whales in the Antarctic.
"We don't accept Japan's premise for those terms of so-called scientific whaling," Rudd told Australia's Fairfax Radio Network. "If we cannot resolve this matter diplomatically, we will take international legal action. I've said that before — I'm serious about it."
And then you have others who have seen the absolute uselessness of the IWC and have taken matters into their own hands, such as the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, who just this month had a encounter with a Japanese Whaling ship and their newest ship, the Ady Gill was sunk.
Sea Shepherd Boat Sinking Neither the kevlar reinforcing, nor a radar deflecting paint job, was enough to protect the Ady Gil trimaran from what Sea Shepherd are calling "an unprovoked attack," when the Japanese security ship Shonan Maru No. 2 apparently "deliberately rammed and caused catastrophic damage."
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According to the captain of another Sea Shepherd boat in the area at the time, the Japanese boat ripped about 2.5 metres (8 ft) of the Ady Gil's bow "completely off." Sea Shepherd are saying the trimaran is "sinking and chances of salvage are very grim." Although they did manage rescue the six crew.
So now what?
Yesterday, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society Released a Statement regarding the sinking of Ady Gil.
A Message from Sea Shepherd’s CEO
By Steve Roest
On January 6, 2010, in blatant disregard for the safety of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society crew, the Japanese whaling vessel Shonan Maru No. 2 attempted to sink the Sea Shepherd vessel Ady Gil off the coast of Antarctica.
Australian, New Zealand, and Japanese government officials call for the crews on both sides to remain calm. I can tell these government officials that there is no need to ask our anti-whaling heroes to be calm, they have been calm and resolute, and will remain so.
But I join the chorus of voices that ask the Japanese whale killers to stop their deliberate attempts to ram and sink our vessels, and kill our crew.
For anyone who has seen the video clips, and millions upon millions of people have, it is clear that the 500 ton Shonan Maru No. 2, aimed at high speed for the 16 ton Sea Shepherd speedboat Ady Gil, and at the last moments, to make certain of a collision, steered hard to starboard to deliberately cut our vessel in two.
There is not a doubt in anyone’s mind that if one of our crewmembers had been in the front part of the Ady Gil when it was struck, they would have been killed instantly. It was a miracle that most of the crew, who obviously had no idea they were about to be rammed, were out on deck securing equipment when the Shonan Maru No. 2 slammed into them.
In an incredible display of cold and calculating violent illegal action, immediately after ramming the Ady Gil, the Shonan Maru No. 2 directed its high pressure water cannons at the stricken Sea Shepherd mariners, whilst ignoring the Ady Gil’s distress calls.
The Ady Gil has been damaged beyond repair, and after repeated attempts by Sea Shepherd’s new ship the Bob Barker to tow the damaged remains of the Ady Gil to the nearest port to asses what might be salvaged, the vessel has broken loose from our tow lines yet again and we have been hit with the gut-wrenching realization that we have no other option than to let it sink. Fortunately we were able to remove all fuel and oils from the Ady Gil before it began to take on too much water, thus preventing a catastrophic leak into the fragile marine environment. Sea Shepherd notified the relevant marine agencies about the sinking Ady Gil and has complied in full with all maritime requirements. All the while, the Japanese whaling fleet continues to ignore our calls for assistance.
This week the Japanese whaling business has sent undercover operatives to hire aircraft in Australia and fly illegally in Australian airspace to hunt for the Sea Shepherd ships, it has deliberately rammed and ultimately sunk one of our vessels off the coast of Antarctica, and it now seems clear that it has this week also focused an international cyber attack on our website to attempt to block us from putting out the truth about what happened and receiving donations from our supporters.
Sea Shepherd demands that New Zealand arrest the Shonan Maru No. 2 and its crew, and that the Japanese whaling industry repay the $2M in losses that resulted from the deliberate sinking of the Ady Gil by its ships.
These attacks are certainly a hefty financial blow to Sea Shepherd; we have lost millions of dollars as a result of the assaults upon us. But we will not flinch from our task to save the whales and the oceans in which they live. We will not pull back from our direct actions to save the whales in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, and we will not pull back from our projects protecting the seals, dolphins, sharks and tuna, despite the fact that our funds are have been so drastically reduced. We will go to our supporters, and with their help we will grow bigger and stronger. We will not hesitate in our duty to save the oceans from the mercenaries of profit and greed that seek to destroy the natural world.
And then there is the reaction from Australians...
MORE than eight in 10 Australians say the Federal Government is not doing enough to prevent Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean, a poll has found.
In a UMR national poll of 1000 people between January 7 and 11, 94 per cent opposed Japanese whaling.
Three-quarters said they were prepared to refuse to buy Japanese products or services to pressure Japan to stop whaling.
Ninety-one per cent had heard of the collision between the Sea Shepherd anti-whaling protest boat Ady Gil and a Japanese whaling ship. Of those who knew about it, 56 per cent believed the Japanese ship caused it. Only 19 per cent said it was caused by the protest boat and 25 per cent were unsure.
This battle is not going to end anytime soon, especially with many who don't support whaling, not just here in the US, but in Australia as well. Many in the scientific community see through the lies as well.
Thanks to treehugger for this great video and information on the study as well.
And some background video on whaling and how the scientists did their genetic analysis:
And here's another topic I'm following closely in Japan, that is the continued slaughter of Dolphins in Taiji. I received this email just yesterday from Save Japan Dolphins.
Ric’s most recent trip to Taiji, coupled with the latest reports that we have been able to verify indicate that the killing of marine mammals in the Cove unfortunately continues. There is more work to be done.
Although the killing of bottlenose dolphins - the primary target species - has dramatically decreased compared to previous seasons, they, along with other dolphin species, including many pilot whales and Risso's dolphins, continue to be captured for aquariums and slaughtered for meat by the Taiji fishermen.
Since the showing of the documentary The Cove, which exposes the slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, Japan, many rumors have swirled around one question: Did The Cove stop the killing of dolphins in Taiji? Some media outlets have publicized statements that would lead the public to believe that dolphins are no longer being hunted there. Sadly, this is not the case. The policy of no killing of bottlenose dolphins has not lasted and was most likely a strategic short-term publicity stunt, aimed at reassuring the international media that bottlenose dolphins would no longer be killed. Bottlenose dolphins are being hunted and killed in Taiji again, along with many other species of dolphin.
It is important to remember that this is the world’s largest dolphin slaughter. Japan issues 23,000 permits annually to fishermen around its shores; in Taiji alone, 1,500 or more dolphins are slaughtered every year. It has been going on for more than 400 years, although the drive fishery has only gone on for the past 70 years or so, and of course the capturing of dolphins for aquariums and swim-with-dolphins programs is a modern, very lucrative addition.
It is not realistic to think that we, or anyone else, can shut it down before this year’s hunting season ends in March 2010. In order to once and for all stop the dolphin slaughter in Japan, The Cove must be viewed by the Japanese people. So far, it has not been. There are 126 million people in Japan. Less than 300 of them have seen the documentary so far. The work, therefore, is now about launching an effort within Japan to ensure that as many Japanese people as possible see The Cove.
The Save Japan Dolphins Coalition is leading that effort, and we are currently finishing up the Japanese translations for The Cove and making copies to distribute around the country, particularly to decision-makers in Tokyo. Additionally, our Coalition will be screening copies around the major cities shortly. We are getting e-mails from people in Japan eager to help us spread the word.