Following the announcement that Japan will 'delay' the planned killing of humpback whales this year, 31 countries issued a protest to the Japanese Government, calling on the country to end it's scientific whaling programme. Almost 1000 other whales will face Japan's harpoons in Antarctic this season.

Philippa Brakes of WDCS said "This protest, led by Australia, is a welcome and significant sign of international opposition to Japanese whaling. Regardless of any temporary reprieve for the humpback whales, we cannot look favorably on the whalers. The lives of these whales should not be in the equation in the first place. We also must not forget that Japan will continue to cruelly kill almost 1,000 whales in their Antarctic hunt and a further 280 in their Pacific hunt. We call on the international community to shame Japan into ending all its cruel and unnecessary whaling activity.”

Up to 935 minke whales and 50 fin whales, listed as an endangered species, will also face the whalers' harpoons in this hunt.

Japan sparked international criticism when it added the fifty humpback whales to its Antarctic hunt this season, the largest ever whale hunt conducted in the name of ‘scientific research’. The addition of the humpback whales and the general expansion of the Antarctic hunt is believed to be part of Japan’s long-term negotiation strategy and coincided with Japan’s failure to gain support within the International Whaling Commission for a ‘coastal’ whaling quota in Japanese waters. 

The US was notably absent from the declaration, and WDCS is deeply concerned that the government did not join the rest of the international community in calling on Japan to cease all of its lethal scientific hunts.  We urge all WDCS supporters to contact US Secretary of Commerce and urge him to insure that the US stand strong against commercial whaling, and to commit not make any concessions on this to Japan’s whalers.

Contact: The Honorable Carlos M. Gutierrez, Secretary of Commerce, 1401 Constitution Ave., NW Washington, DC 20230  and/or  cgutierrez@doc.gov