BBC News 21 Dec 07;
Amid criticism over Japan's whaling mission in the Southern Ocean, officials explain to the BBC why they continue to sanction whaling.
In November the Japanese whaling fleet set sail for waters off Antarctica to begin its annual hunt. Over a six-month period, it will kill 1,000 whales as part of what it says is a scientific research programme. Western nations and environmental groups have roundly condemned the move, calling the programme a front for commercial whaling.
But deputy whaling commissioner Joji Morishita told BBC News that Japan's position was hugely misunderstood.
What drives Japan is a belief in the principle of sustainable use of resources, whatever they might be, he said.
"Many countries support sustainable use of resources, but somehow they exempt whales from this principle, because they think whales are a special animal.
"But there are many special animals - the cow in India, for example - and if each nation tries to impose its own special animal on other countries, you can see the problem."
Whales should be treated just like any other resource, he said, but this does not mean that Japan would act irresponsibly.
"We are not saying that we want to utilise endangered or depleted species.
"People say they want to preserve whales for future generations and we agree. We want to preserve whales as a resource, so we have a mutual goal."
And Japan's research programme is about fulfilling this goal, he said.
"The reason for the moratorium [on commercial whaling] was scientific uncertainty about the number of whales. It was a moratorium for the sake of collecting data and that is why we started scientific whaling. We were asked to collect more data."
'By-product'
This year, the programme will involve killing more than 900 minke whales and 50 fin whales - meat from which will end up canned, in school dinners or on the menu in restaurants across Japan.
The mission was also due to kill 50 rare humpback whales, but Japan has now backed down on this, in response to pressure from the International Whaling Commission (IWC).
"Whaling and whale cuisine are part of Japanese culture, but the purpose of the research programme is science," said Dan Goodman, councillor to Japan's Institute of Cetacean Research.
"The fact that the whale meat - which we call by-product - is sold is because the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling specifically requires that the by-product of research be processed. It is a legally binding obligation."
The ultimate aim of the research, he said, is a properly managed resumption of commercial whaling.
"It is just like any fisheries - tuna, salmon, for example - the proper way to conduct the fisheries is to do the science to work out how best to manage the resources."
Mr Goodman rejected criticism that the same research data could be obtained using non-lethal techniques.
"More than 100 measurements and samples are taken from each whale and there are some bits of information that you can only get from lethal research."
"For example, you need ovaries to determine pregnancy rates, which you can't get by simply observing these animals."
'Issues of principle'
Speaking before the Japanese took the decision to drop their humpback hunt, he said expanding the programme to other whales - including humpbacks - was necessary because their numbers were increasing dramatically and it was important to see how that would affect ecosystems.
"More criticism is directed at the humpback part of the programme, because humpbacks form the basis of the whale-watching programme in Australia," he acknowledged.
Both officials are aware that, in some countries and among environment groups, anti-whaling sentiment is running high.
Mr Goodman said plans by Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd to try to disrupt the hunt were cause for concern.
"We are concerned for the safety of our crew and scientists on board, and concerned about the dangerous and irresponsible actions on the part of these organisations that we have seen in the past," he said.
There was less concern over the possibility that the whaling programme could be triggering anti-Japanese sentiment in places like Australia and New Zealand.
"It would be good if we were not causing any bad feelings," said Mr Morishita.
"But sometimes issues of science and principle might be more important than simple issues of emotion, especially if they are based on misunderstandings."
"We need to spend more energy on giving a balanced picture of this issue."
