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Japan thwarted in legalising whale meat
Santiago (Chile), Nov 09: A proposal to legalise the international sale of endangered whale meat was defeated at the 12th UN Convention of International Trade in endangered species to the relief of conservationists and to thefrustration of Japan`s government.
Santiago (Chile), Nov 09: A proposal to legalise the international sale of endangered whale meat was defeated at the 12th UN Convention of International Trade in endangered species to the relief of conservationists and to the
frustration of Japan`s government.
Japan, a whale-eating nation, presented two proposals to remove Bryde and Minke whales from the endangered species lists in the hopes of creating a small but legal international market for their whale meat.
While other traditionally whale-eating nations like Norway and Iceland supported the proposals, Japan fell shy of the two-thirds majority from the 160 nations present at the biennial convention.
Conservation groups celebrated the defeat yesterday over what they see as Japan`s attempts to rekindle international whaling, which was banned in 1986 when many species faced extinction. "No one`s sure what Japan`s motives are, but they`re going to keep digging and keep at it until they get what they want," said Kitty Block, an international legal counsel to the US Humane Society. She has fought Japan`s attempts to legalise whale hunting for the past decade.
In Japan, the Crimson whale meat has been consumed ever since the 17th century and reached its greatest levels in the years following World War II when the American military suggested whale hunting as a way to stave off mass hunger.
Many Japanese in their middle ages remember eating whale meat in school lunches, and some say that it was seen in the same way canned tunafish is in the United States.
Japan, a whale-eating nation, presented two proposals to remove Bryde and Minke whales from the endangered species lists in the hopes of creating a small but legal international market for their whale meat.
While other traditionally whale-eating nations like Norway and Iceland supported the proposals, Japan fell shy of the two-thirds majority from the 160 nations present at the biennial convention.
Conservation groups celebrated the defeat yesterday over what they see as Japan`s attempts to rekindle international whaling, which was banned in 1986 when many species faced extinction. "No one`s sure what Japan`s motives are, but they`re going to keep digging and keep at it until they get what they want," said Kitty Block, an international legal counsel to the US Humane Society. She has fought Japan`s attempts to legalise whale hunting for the past decade.
In Japan, the Crimson whale meat has been consumed ever since the 17th century and reached its greatest levels in the years following World War II when the American military suggested whale hunting as a way to stave off mass hunger.
Many Japanese in their middle ages remember eating whale meat in school lunches, and some say that it was seen in the same way canned tunafish is in the United States.
Bureau Report