Present Whaling

Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

While it seems absurd that Japan would send a whaling fleet to the ends of the Earth to catch whales, the motives of the officials behind the hunt are crystal clear. With three-quarters of the world's remaining whale populations found in the southern hemisphere, the whaling industry would need access to them to return to full scale commercial whaling.  This is why Greenpeace campaigned strongly for the creation of a Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary - and why we're still pressing for it to become a real sanctuary by getting Japan to end its annual commercial whaling hunt there. Protecting the Southern Ocean is the key to stopping commercial whaling around the world.
When the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary was announced in 1994, it was countered by an increase of 100 whales taken by Japan's whaling fleet. At the June 2005 International Whaling Commission meeting, the Japanese government controversially announced plans to add endangered Antarctic fin and threatened humpback whales to its annual shopping list, and doubled its quota for minke whales.

However, in the face of public outcry and diplomatic pressure from around the world - from the United States and Australia in particular - in December 2007, Japan announced a temporary back-down on its plans to kill 50 humpbacks in the 2007-2008 season.

A humpback whale harpooned by a Japanese whaling vessel in the Southern Ocean.

photo taken by Sea Shephred