Japanese whalers has killed at least 50 minke whales a solution to a legal vacuum in the marine protected area of Antarctica’s Ross Sea, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) on Tuesday.
Although fishing is banned in the area, Japan allows itself to hunt whales under a “scientific” programme which still sees the meat go on sale. The 2018 hunt led to 333 minke whales being killed in the Southern Ocean, including 122 pregnant females.
The disclosure comes on the opening day of the International Whaling Commission’s annual meeting in Brazil, which Japan is chairing as it seeks to restart commercial whaling.
“The Ross Sea MPA is supposed to have special protection from human activities to safeguard a wealth of Antarctic wildlife. People around the world who celebrated this historic ocean sanctuary will be shocked by the killing of whales within its boundaries,” Chris Johnson of the WWF Antarctic program said in a statement.
According to the IWC, a three-quarter vote from its 88 members is required as a minimum support for the setting up of sanctuary zones where whaling is prohibited, but Tokyo seeks to lower the requirement to a simple majority.
“Thousands of other species are protected in this part of the Ross Sea, so it is shocking and absurd that minke whales are not,” said Rod Downie, polar chief adviser at WWF. “The banner of so called ‘scientific whaling’ needs to stop once and for all. The IWC and CCAMLR must work together and take immediate action to close these loopholes currently being exploited by Japan to ensure this ocean sanctuary is protected for future generations.”
Clare Perry, at the UK’s Environmental Investigation Agency, said “Japan, Iceland and Norway have collectively killed at least 38,539 great whales since 1986,” she said. “Many whale species have not yet recovered from massive overhunting in the past and are also facing mounting existential threats ranging from climate change to marine pollution by chemical, plastics and noise.”
>Juthy Saha
Japan Killed Over 50 Whales in Protected Antarctica Zone
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