Japan's whaling fleet extends Antarctic killing fields for 2010 hunt

Montage from Tsaparang

Australia-Japan-New Zealand news roundup concerning the whale slaughter about to take place in the Southern Ocean.

Asahi Shimbun 1 December 2010 Pro-whaling nations gather for confab:

SHIMONOSEKI, Yamaguchi Prefecture--Delegates from 23 nations and regions kicked off a two-day conference here Tuesday on devising a strategy to resume commercial whaling now banned under international rules. Japan's Fisheries Agency hopes the Meeting of Representatives on Sustainable Use of the Cetaceans will come up with a new proposal on commercial whaling to be submitted to the general assembly of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) in London next year…….Although research whaling fleets usually leave Japan around mid-November, whaling ships had not departed for the Southern Hemisphere as of Monday due to concerns about heightened confrontations with anti-whaling groups. The Fisheries Agency plans to have armed Japan Coast Guard officers join the whalers for the next expedition.

Earth Times 2 December 2010 Japan's whaling fleet leaves port for annual hunt :

Tokyo - The Japanese whaling fleet left Thursday for this year's hunt in the Antarctic later than usual and with a much smaller fleet, the Greenpeace environmental group said. The reason for the delay was the lack of demand for whale meat, the non-government organization said. Traditionally, the fleet leaves Japan in November and returns in April. "The reduced size of the Japanese whaling fleet means they will be unable to catch more than half of their quota," said Wakao Hanaoka, oceans campaigner for Greenpeace Japan, which said the reduced fleet was caused by ships being sold or scrapped. The whalers "are up to their necks in it," Greenpeace marine biologist Thilo Maack said. "First, they lose their tanker and refrigerator ship, then their sightings ship. Now they have to satisfy themselves with a halved quota and a drastically shorter hunting season." A majority of Japanese do not eat whale meat, leading to the accumulation of a huge stockpile. According to the latest government data available, as of the end of August, there were 5,790 tons of whale meat in cold storage.

Evri 15 December 2010 NZ warns of dangerous Antarctic whaling season:

WELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — New Zealand warned Wednesday that the mood between Japanese whalers and protesters who challenge them annually off Antarctica is especially volatile this year, and urged both sides to show restraint to ensure no one is killed.

The Sydney Morning Herald 16 December 2010 Fillip to Australian whale case

NEW ZEALAND has come to the aid of Australia's legal case against Japan over whaling.By deciding to ''intervene'' rather than formally filing as a ''party'' to the case, New Zealand will enable both governments to have a judge on the panel hearing the case in the International Court of Justice.Its decision was pragmatic and reflected Australia's preference, the Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd, said yesterday.''New Zealand will be able to make both written and oral submissions to the court that Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean is contrary to its obligations under applicable international conventions,'' Mr Rudd said.His NZ counterpart, Murray McCully, said his country already had a judge on the court, Sir Kenneth Keith, and joining the two actions would have resulted in Australia losing its entitlement to a judge.Canberra has yet to nominate an Australian judge.Mr McCully said he had spoken to the Japanese Foreign Minister, Seiji Maehara, about further diplomatic initiatives.

ABC News 17 December 2010 Conservationists condemn 'illegal' whale hunt :

The Japanese whaling fleet has come under more pressure to abandon its annual hunt in the Southern Ocean this summer.Conservation groups have accused the country of breaching an injunction issued by the Federal Court two years ago by undertaking its annual whale hunt this summer.The Japanese whaling fleet is currently on its way south and this year its quota includes more than 1,000 whales.The injunction, secured by Humane Society International in January 2008, argues the hunt in Australia's Antarctic territorial waters is illegal.The Federal Government's case also calls into question Japan's scientific whaling program.It has been lodged in the International Court of Justice, but it could take years before the matter is heard.ABC News 20 December 2010 Newest anti-whaling boat to set sail:The newest addition to the Sea Shepherd anti-whaling fleet is due to leave Hobart this morning for the Southern Ocean. The 30 metre monohull and its crew of 11 have spent the past two weeks preparing for the campaign against the Japanese whaling fleet. The multi-million dollar Gojira will meet up with the conservation group's ships Bob Barker and Steve Irwin.

The Sydney Morning Herald 21 December 2010 Whalers double hunt area to foil activists:

JAPANESE whalers have radically changed their plans this summer, doubling the area of the Southern Ocean in which they say they may hunt.The change, notified to the International Whaling Commission, will make it more difficult for anti-whaling activists to find the whalers.Japan's self-awarded scientific permit for 2010-11 gives the whaling fleet millions of square kilometres of ocean south of Australia in which to hunt, as well as south of New Zealand………The Greens leader, Bob Brown, said the shift made it imperative for Australian authorities to watch the hunt, at least through aerial surveillance.''I will be talking to the Japanese ambassador in Canberra and offering the opinion that this is criminal behaviour in the Australian Antarctic Territory,'' Senator Brown said.The Environment Minister, Tony Burke, said there had been no decision to send a monitoring vessel south this season, and there were adequate international protocols to fulfil search-and-rescue obligations.The permit confirms that a four-ship fleet plans to take up to 935 minke whales and 50 fin whales this summer. Humpbacks also have been included, but Japan told the commission it would continue to suspend this catch ''as long as progress is being made in the discussions on the future of the IWC''.These talks stalled at the commission's annual meeting in Morocco last June, and no further talks have been scheduled.Greenpeace's international whales campaign co-ordinator, John Frizell, said the fleet's size had been reduced for the second year, and the season shortened by one month.''Whatever they are doing, it is not business as usual, and I suspect it is being driven largely by the fact that sales of whale meat in Japan are poor and that they need to cut operating costs,'' he said.