Please boycott Japan - Japanese whaling fleet is about to set sail!

[mummyrex]

I am not usually very political and have never done anything like this before, but could you all please email everyone you know with the above plea asking them to do the same? Lots of people still haven?t bought presents yet for Christmas so we can maybe do something if we all do it NOW!

The Japanese whaling fleet is about to set sail to Antarctica to begin the slaughter of 800 Humpback Whales, 800 Fin Whales and l7,000 Minkes. The Japanese also refuse to rule out killing Migaloo, the world's only known white humpback whale www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2007/11/12/eawhale112.xml

Please help save the whales by boycotting Japanese goods this Christmas and beyond until they stop this horrendous practice. They have ignored political and diplomatic pressure for years so this is the only way to hit them where it hurts.

Whales are dying hideous deaths, drowning in their own blood in appalling agony, sometimes taking hours to die.

I have found a website trying to promote this as well

I agree that their whaling policy is appalling. But the thing is that there are hardly any Japanese goods on sail-- they have moved virtually all their factories to China.
China's human rights record, labour rights record, environmental record is arguably ten times worse than Japan's.

I say boycott Chinese goods instead!

then boycott Japanese brands made in China and we will both be happy

There is probably a Friends of the Earth or Greenpeace petition online to put pressure on the Jap govt to stop whaling. When Iceland was going to start whaling again lots of people signed a petition to say they would go to Iceland on holiday to whale watch and the Icelandic govt decided against whaling.

There has been a huge amount of diplomatic pressure and so many petitions over the years.

The plain fact is that the Japanese don't care what anybody else thinks of them in this regard - and, arguably, why should they.

However, like everybody else they do care about the bottom line and and if we can start to hit them economically then that might just have an impact.

Here we are - you can email Milliband here (not that he will give a shit if the state of our own fish stocks is anything to go by):

"I am writing to express serious concern about the increasing threats to the great whales around the globe and I ask you to do all you can to increase protection for these magnificent ambassadors of the ocean.

From habitat destruction and the harmful effects of ocean noise, to entanglement in fishing gear, ship strikes, the emerging threat of global warming and renewed efforts by Japan, Norway and Iceland to expand commercial whaling - whales face more threats today than at any other time in history

The 2007 meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in Anchorage, Alaska this May represents a critical crossroads for whale protection efforts worldwide. The Government of Japan continues to defy the global ban on commercial whaling with its "scientific" whaling program - despite the fact that IFAW scientists demonstrate that the best way to study whales in the 21st century is through non-lethal research.

The Government of Japan has announced plans to add 50 humpback whales to its annual target list, starting this year. Humpbacks are known for their beautiful and haunting songs, and are beloved by whale watchers around the world as the acrobatic giants of the sea. Late last year, Iceland launched a resumption of commercial whaling as an "experiment" and Norway has increased its killing of minke whales in the North Atlantic. In all, more than 30,000 great whales have been killed for commercial purposes since the global moratorium went into effect in 1986.

I urge you to use the powers invested in you by your supporters to:

• Oppose the cruel slaughter of great whales through commercial and "scientific" whaling
• Save 50 humpback whales a year from the Government of Japan?s whaling fleet
• Use all possible diplomatic actions to encourage a solid voting majority at the IWC in favor of whale protection and conservation

It is crucial that we act now to promote protection for great whales around the globe at a time when they face more threats than ever before. To achieve this end, it will take much more than simple verbal condemnations against whaling. It will take definitive action with real consequences for those who continue to defy international law. Thank you."

I actually think that donating to Sea Shepherd is the most effective way to stop the whaling fleet: seashepherd.org/ but putting political pressure on the Jap govt is no bad thing either.

this makes me so angry.

I live in Japan and I too feel strongly about this issue.
However, the average Japanese person on the street really knows nothing about it and doesn't care either way.
The reason the whaling continues is entirely political and is decided purely by politicians.

The politicians claim that whaling is part of the Japanese cultural identity and that the country would lose something vital if it stopped, but that is complete nonsense.
The number of people who are involved in the industry or effected by it even slightly is tiny.
People used to eat whale, but that was a long time ago and now very few people do. Most people I know have never tried it or only ate it as part of their school dinners many years ago.

There is now a massive mountain of whale meat that is unused and unwanted. It is used in dog food and in school dinners just to get rid of it.
The government has recently been trying to persuade people to eat more of the stuff, partly to get rid of the moutain and partly to gain backing for the idea that people in Japan want whaling to continue.
They have been using it in school dinners partly as a way of bringing up a new generation of whale meat-eaters.

It's a really difficult issue because it's simply a political one and I honestly have no idea why they are so determined to keep it going. The pressure must come from the governers of the areas still involved in the industry.
It's just a shame that so few people are responsible for tarnishing the international image of an entire nation.

The best way to stop it would be to educate the Japanese people about how barbaric it is. That may move them to get it stopped.
On the other hand, the Japanese people have little or no control over their politicians, so maybe it wouldn't do any good anyway.
It's a really difficult issue.

Oh Ruth, how sad that the whales are not even hunted for food.

I agree Callisto.

As I wrote my first message I was discussing this issue with my Japanese DH.
He has no idea why whaling continues or why the Japanese government even want it to continue.

I think a big part of it is that they have got a bee in their bonnet about it and are too stubborn to back down.

I'm in Japan too (waves at Ruthchan!) and I agree with what she said. I would imagine most Japanese people would have the same reaction as those in the west - and would probably be much more interesting in whale-watching than whale-burgers...
The Japanese government is as usual being stupid, short-sighted, and bloody-minded. There is absolutely no need to hunt whales in this day and age, especially with such international condemnation. Having said that, I always try and remember that it was the West, and Britain included, that decimated whale populations until the 1960s, and only for the oil - the whales were not even hunted for food (like they used to be in Japan - no need for it now, of course) this makes interesting reading

by the way, Ruthchan, where abouts are you living? I'm in south Kanagawa, on the coast. You aren't a member of MIJ (Married in Japan) are you?? (sorry for hijack)

Am with you 100% mummyrex.

Interesting to hear the viewpoint of people in Japan too.

Hi Sakura
Yeah, it is awful isn't it.
I know what you mean about the British decimating whale populations in the past, but that's no excuse for other countries doing it now.
I honestly believe that the best way to fight it would be to educate the Japanese people who really do love whale watching.
The problem is how to do that and then how to persuade the government that the people don't want it to continue.

(I'm in Aichi, just south of Nagoya.
No I'm not in MIJ. Is that an internet based thing?)

Ruthchan
This is MIJ if you are interested. It is a bit like MN (not everyone is a mum, though) and is equally addictive
if you do decide to join, remember to fill out the second form and send it in (to me, I'm the moderator)

Please enlighten me, why is killing whale so much worse than killing cows, poultry, pigs, and other animals?

Why this uproar about this one particular animal?

If you are serious with your question, killing whales is worse because of the method of killing and because they are endangered, not to mention their high intelligence levels. I wouldn't eat beef if cows were rare and my only method of catching and killing was to spear the cow and wait a couple of hours for it to bleed to death in a fairly agonising, meat-tainting way.

and if the meat is just left to rot

I find this article very sensationalist. It is all based on the assumption that the Japanese may kill one particular rare whale (Migaloo, an albino humpback), not that they have any intention of going out to hunt this particular whale.
The article relies heavily on quotes from laymen, tourists and other people in the vicinity who just happened to be there, rather than scientist or even members of the IWC, thus furthering the view that this is pure anti-whaling propaganda from journalists so far removed from arctic / antarctic nature that I doubt it would recognise or even distinguish a seal from a whale.

I would parp and say propaganda, but I wont.

Look at the OPs numbers, it is not that big:
800 Humpback Whales out of 34,000 - 52,000
l7,000 Minkes out of 510,000 - 1,140,000
800 Fin Whales ? There is no figure for the population of Fin Whales in the Southern Hemisphere, but there is around 39,000 in the norther hemisphere.

The articles says:
"It has declared that for the first time it will kill 50 humpbacks, as well as 50 fin whales and hundreds of minke whales."

So I dont know where the OP find her figures. Yet, it says further on:

"Japan uses a loophole in International Whaling Commission laws to hunt around 1,000 whales each year in the Southern Hemisphere, ostensibly for the purposes of scientific research."

Why shouldnt it be for scientific research? There is no proof there isnt.

what we have to bear in mind is that Japan (as well as Norway) are members of the IWH (International Whaling Commision", and are bound by its rules and regulations. The commission is set up to protect the population of Whales across the globe.

There is no scientific research necessary with those whales. They have been well studied. And the meat really does end up as sushi. Surely if it was scientific it would end up in a lab somewhere?
It is just a ruse by the Japanese govt-- a pride thing

So, using a particularly inhumane and dispicable method of killing what is probably the most intelligent mammal on earth is fine then? As long is it is for 'scientific research'?

i know it's different but the chinese hunting of sharks for sharks fin makes me sick

I agree SEA.

Like any killing of an animal is "humane"?

I have seen a cow run in panick from the slaughter house. It caused a bit of a traffic jam in town.
Dont tell me the cow wasnt scared. Long journey in the back of a lorry, and then what? Not like she was going on holiday?
Is cattle too stupid to care? Is that why we eat beaf?

While I am against the killing of endangered species, I am slightly miffed by the thougth that we as carnivores shall distinguish between the killing of this animal against the killing of another animal (for whatever reason) on the food chain. On the assumption that the whale end up on the dinner table and not in a lab.

But to be perfectly honest, I dont know much about Japans position in the whole Whale hunting issue, born and bred in Norway I grew up with the odd whale beef for dinner. It is a staple of Norwegian cuisine. At least it was, until all the restrictions were put in place. Now one boat per year visit the harbour, and the town is quieing up, to buy a small quota of meat. I quite resent that what has for generations been a whole coastal nation's livelihood, should be subjected to this sort of sensationalism.

Actually humane slaughter is achievable, though the animals know they are going to be killed. However, there is an enormous difference between taking cattle who are very used to human contact to an abbatoir where they are stunned and killed painlessly, and hunting down a highly intelligent animal that cannot be killed in an humane way. The fact that you are willing to compare the two is ridiculous and shows a lack of understanding and empathy for all animals.

It doesn't upset me that they kill the whales. I do find their methods appalling. They need to find a more humane way of killing them.

Agree with the poster who said that China is the one who should be boycotted. They are treating Human beings cruely yet people still purchase their products every day