International law took a step forward as the fraud of claiming "research" motives for whaling was put aside by the International Court of Justice at the Hague.
A "deeply disappointed" Tokyo said earlier this week it would honour Monday's judgement by the international court of justice (ICJ) in The Hague, but did not exclude the possibility of future whaling programs.
On Thursday, officials said the next Antarctic hunt, which would have started later this year, had been scrapped, just weeks after the most recent one finished.
"We have decided to cancel research whaling [in the Antarctic] for the fiscal year starting in April because of the recent ruling," a fisheries agency official told AFP.
Japan confirms cancellation of whale hunt in response to court ruling -- in The Guardian
The Whales Have Won! — ICJ Rules Japan’s Southern Ocean Whaling ‘Not For Scientific Research’
Sea Shepherd Applauds the World Court for Protecting the Whales of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary
In a stunning victory for the whales, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague announced their binding decision today in the landmark case of Australia v. Japan, ruling that Japan’s JARPA II whaling program in the Antarctic is not for scientific purposes and ordering that all permits given under JARPA II be revoked.
There was speculation at DKOS on Monday of this week that Japan would ignore ICJ. In fact the Japanese government had agreed to comply when they submitted to ICJ jurisdiction for the trial and presented their side of the case.
Prior ICJ cases have settled any number of border disputes in South and Central America. Same for commercial disputes in Europe and Asia. There's more to this case... below the orange muffin:
Whales are not protected for areas away from Australia and New Zealand. And yes, I saved the bad news for BTF.
On Wednesday, Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe said his government would abide by the court ruling, but added that the ruling was "a pity and I am deeply disappointed".
He's lying. Gawd is he lying. It's beautiful. Done perfectly.
This whaling problem put Japan on front pages everywhere for the all-out on-going war with Sea Shepherd. There's no way that could go on without people being killed. They've been at the point of ramming each other. I'm not going to link to combat -- not my favorite activity -- but you all know how to do google/youtube.
ICJ gave Abe the out he needed to end the worst of the whaling war. I admire his political acumen. Think of all the whales this man has saved with one simple stratagem.
Now this maritime war will shift to the Northern Pacific. That's a bit tougher for the Sea Shepherd side for logistics. But do expect to see new battles in 2015.
Sea Shepherd vikings vs. Japanese whalers. A certain conflict unless PM Shinzo Abe can find a way to stop the whole of his nation's offshore whaling enterprise.
Here's the earlier diary:
International Court of Justice Bans Japanese Whaling
It's just one part of Japanese whaling that lost its licenses. But that's a very good diary, particularly getting to background, a link to the judgement, and other detail. Japan had not yet responded.