The last few days in the Southern Oceans off Antarctica have been eventful. Last Saturday a Greenpeace ship confronted a Japanese whaling fleet that had set out to hunt around a thousand minke and fin whales in the name of 'research'. The recent documentary 'Battleship Antarctica', which was on television in late December, provided a fascinating insight into this cat-and-mouse chase between Greenpeace's ship the Esperanza and the Japanese fleet, showing life on board and the crew's determination to save as many whales as possible in a peaceful manner. Ironically, due to a fire onboard the whalers were forced to abandon their hunt during previous 06-07 season.
Last November, Japan dispatched its whaling fleet to the icy waters of Antarctica to kill about 1,000 whales under a programme that Tokyo says is for scientific purposes. The sides of the whaling ships are emblazoned 'RESEARCH'. Japan's whaling fleet is run by a government-backed research institute and operates under an International Whaling Commission clause that allows the killing of whales for scientific purposes. Last month Japan bowed to international pressure and abandoned its plan to include 50 humpback whales in the hunt. It would have been the first major hunt of humpback whales since the 1960s. Commercial hunts of humpbacks have been banned worldwide since 1966, and commercial whaling overall since 1986. Greenpeace states that there is a glut of whale meat in the market, with stockpiles growing due to whalers being unable to sell their catch. Although humpbacks have been spared this year, fin and minke whales are still the target of the whalers. As someone who has travelled to Antarctica and has seen minke and humpback whales myself, I would urge people to send an email to the Japanese government via Greenpeace's website, asking them to spare ALL whales and not just the humpbacks. One of my most treasured memories was sitting in a zodiac in the Lemaire Channel, amidst a stunning backdrop of glaciers and mountains, with a pair of humpbacks swimming around us, rolling over and showing their barnacled bellies. These are beautiful creatures that need to be protected.
Australia, a strong opponent of whaling, for the first time this season sent a government-hired ship the 'Ocean Viking' to collect photo and video evidence for a possible legal challenge to Japan's scientific whaling programme. Read the report from the Daily Telegraph here.
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