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Whalers turn whale watchers

Whalers turn whale watchers

WDC and the Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Environment Fund are celebrating the launch of two boats that will be dedicated to whale and wildlife watching tours. The two vessels will operate out of Barrouallie, a place that had been known for the taking of pilot whales, orcas and some species of dolphins. However, since 2014,…

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Icelandic whaling report raises concerns

A long-anticipated report into the economic impact of Icelandic whaling has been released and raises a number of concerns.  Commissioned by the Icelandic government’s Ministry of Industries and Innovation, which includes the pro-whaling Fisheries Ministry, the report is authored by the University of Iceland’s Institute of Economic Studies, and concludes that whaling is of overall benefit to the…

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Japan officially announces intention to start commercial whaling again

Today the Japanese government confirmed its withdrawal from the International Whaling Commission (IWC – the international body that regulates whale hunting) in order to officially resume commercial whaling.  Yoshihide Suga, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary, said in a statement the hunts would start in July 2019. In 1982, the IWC introduced a ban on all commercial…

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Japan to withdraw from International Whaling Commission and start hunting whales for commercial profit

The Japanese government has decided to withdraw from the International Whaling Commission (IWC – the international body that regulates whale hunting) so that it can begin hunting whales for commercial profit. In doing so, Japan has effectively turned its back on international co-operation around the regulation of whale hunting. In 1982, the IWC introduced a…

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A new opportunity to stop Japan’s whaling?

Last Wednesday, the European Parliament voted ‘yes’ to the EU-Japan free trade agreement (or Economic Partnership Agreement). It also agreed to a closely related strategic partnership agreement with Japan. This marked the end of our campaign to use these trade talks to get better protection for whales from the harpoons of Japanese whalers. Our aim…

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Will Japan leave the International Whaling Commission?

Every now and again whaling interests in Japan call on their government to leave the International Whaling Commission (IWC, the body that regulates whaling). ‘JEXIT’ as one commentator noted, trying to be clever. This is not the first time that Japan has threatened to leave the IWC. Seemingly used as a negotiating tool, it has…

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Japan's minke whale hunt season starts under cloud of controversy

Japan’s highly controversial whaling season in the Antarctic has begun again with hunting vessels leaving the western Japanese port of Shimonoseki today. Their mission is to slaughter up to 333 minke whales through until March 2019 for research. This will be the fourth such hunt since 2015 and will take place despite their scientific value being…

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