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photographs from around the world and departure of Japanese fleet.
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5 November 2001
Worldwide protest urges Japanese
whaling fleet "Don't Go" |
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Giant eyeballs appeared at Japanese embassies
around the globe today as Greenpeace activists implored the
Japanese Prime Minister not to send his whaling fleet to Antarctica
to hunt minke whales. |
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Protestors in 14 countries (1) today converged
on Japanese embassies today. More countries are expected to
follow.
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In Sydney, Australia, a large pink whale was parked near to the
Japanese Consulate and activists wearing giant eyeballs over their
heads - denoting "the world is watching" - presented a
message tot he Deputy Consulate to be conveyed to the Prime Minister,
Mr. Koizumi. The Japanese text, printed on a rice paper scroll read
"Don't go!" Outiside, protestors unfurled banners and
handed out leaflets to the public.
 In
Auckland, New Zealand, the Senior Consul accepted the rice paper
scroll from the hands of an "eyeball head" protestor,
saying he would communicate the message to the Foreign Ministry
in Japan. In Fiji a letter was delivered to the First Secretary
for Economic Affairs, while at the Greenpeace office, banners -
some in Japanese text - raised public curiosity.
More eyeball protestors delivered messages in the UK, Germany,
Norway, Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Austria, the Netherlands, Italy
and Spain.. with others to follow.
At the same time thousands of people around the world faxed or
emailed similar messages to the Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi.
In Japan, Greenpeace had already delivered petitions tothe offices
of the Prime Minister and to those of the Minister of Foreign Affairs,
Ms. Takana and the Minister of Agriculture, Forests and Fisheries,
Mr. Takebe, demanding that the whaling fleet not be allowed to leave
Shimonoseki.
The Japanese whaling fleet of one factory ship, three catchers
and a spotting boat is due to depart Shimonoseki, Southern Japan,
today or tomorrow, and will travel to Antarctica to hunt 440 minke
whales.
This is despite a plea from the International
Whaling Commission (IWC) that the Japanese government should
"halt the lethal takes of whales" (2), and the
fact that the IWC has designated the area a sanctuary for whales.
 The
whales Japan hunts appear to be in decline and IWC scientists are
unable to agree on an estimate for the number of whales or to rule
out that this population may have suffered a precipitous decline
over the past decade.
Today's protests serve as a warning that Japan is now perilously
close to bringing about an end to the moratorium on commercial whaling.
Japan
has admitted using overseas aid to buy support from developing countries
in the Caribbean and elsewhere.
In an interview broadcast on the Australian ABC TV in July 2001,
a senior Japanese official, Mr Komatsu, described Minke whales as
"cockroaches of the sea", and admitted that Japan saw development
aid as a "major tool" in ensuring that key developing countries
voted in favour of whaling at the IWC.
 Of
the 14 IWC member countries that opposed the IWC's plea to Japan
to halt the lethal take of whales, 9 were developing countries implicated
in the vote buying scandal. One Caribbean Prime Minister has admitted
that his country sells its vote to Japan (3).
Japanese government officials are believed to be intensifying their
efforts to build a majority before the next meeting of the IWC.
This will be held in the Japanese fleet's home port of Shimonoseki
in May 2002.
"Japan wants a return to high seas whaling with factory ships,
and is willing to use bribery to get it," said Richard Page, Greenpeace
oceans campaigner.
"If the global community doesn't stop Japan rigging the deck at
the IWC we'll see again the sort of whaling that devastated whale
populations all over the globe."
"Year after year Japan has ignored world opinion," said Motoji
Nagasawa, Greenpeace Campaigner in Japan. "Perhaps the Prime Minister,
Mr. Koizumi is different and will listen. We hope he will end Japan's
whaling and stop the fleet before it leaves port."
Notes:
(1) Australia, Austria, Denmark, Fiji, Finland,
Germany, Italy, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland,
The Netherlands and the UK. More protests are expected in the US,
Chile and Mexico.
(2) The Resolution on southern hemisphere minke
whales and special permit whaling passed by the IWC in July 2001,
includes the following:
"CONCERNED that the Scientific Committee report cannot rule out
that the Southern Hemisphere minke whale population may have suffered
a precipitous decline over the past decade;
NOW THEREFORE THE COMMISSION ... STRONGLY URGES the Government of
Japan to halt the lethal takes of minke whales conducted under the
JARPA programme, at least until the Scientific Committee has reported
to the Commission on the impacts of the JARPA programme on the stocks
of minke whales in Areas IV and V."
(3) Antigua and Barbuda whaling support partly
linked to Japanese aid. Caribbean News Agency CANA, 16 July 2001.
Take action
Send
a fax to Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi asking him to stop the
whaling fleet leaving for Antarctic waters to hunt Minke whales.
Urge
your government to publicly criticise Japanese vote buying.
Join
the Global Whale Action Team for regular updates and action alerts.
Send an e-card to a friend to spread the
word.
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