GREENPEACE CALLS ON NORWAY AND JAPAN TO HALT COMMERCIAL WHALING

GREENPEACE CALLS ON NORWAY AND JAPAN TO HALT COMMERCIAL WHALING
Monaco/Amsterdam, 21 October 1997
As the 49th meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) gets underway in Monaco this week, Greenpeace called on Japan and Norway to stop commercial whaling.
"In defiance of the worldwide ban on commercial whaling, more than a thousand whales were openly caught and killed by Norway and Japan this year alone," said Greenpeace whale campaigner John Frizell. "And the figures show they are increasing their take from year to year, tripling since the start of the decade. This meeting must take action to stop them."
Japan's so-called 'scientific' whaling in the Antarctic was unmasked by IWC scientists at a special review meeting. The meeting concluded that the results of the Japanese program were "not required for management" under the IWC's Revised Management Plan.
"The IWC has agreed that killing of whales for research should only be permitted in exceptional circumstances to address critically important issues," said Frizell. "Japan's Antarctic research whaling has been revealed as a sham; it is concerned with producing whale meat, not data needed by the IWC."
In 1994 the IWC declared the Southern Ocean a whale sanctuary by a vote of 23 to 1. In 1995 Japan increased the number of whales killed in the Antarctic from 330 to 440. And Japan plans to send another whaling expedition there early next month. Greenpeace calls on the Government of Japan to revoke the permit for this expedition and cancel it.
DNA testing has found that prohibited species of whales are still on sale in Japan. Norway's whalers -- who are defying the international ban on commercial whaling -- have made it clear that the lucrative Japanese market is their goal. Japan's Antarctic whaling program revealed that their 1996/97 Antarctic catch had yielded 1,995 tons of meat -- the largest ever volume from the program. They expected to generate 3.5 billion yen (about US$ 35 million) from sales at the wholesale level.
"Whaling by Norway and Japan is not being controlled by the IWC," said Frizell. "The IWC and individual nations must do everything they can to get these renegade countries to abide by the moratorioum."
At this week's meeting, Ireland is expected to propose a ban on international trade, a global ocean sanctuary, a phase out of 'scientific' whaling and limited whaling under IWC control. Greenpeace supports a trade ban, a whale sanctuary and an end to scientific whaling but remains opposed to all commercial whaling, including coastal whaling.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:
John Frizell or James Gillies in Monaco on ++377 9330 8648, mobile ++ 31 6 5350 4721