Tag Archives: Whaling in Japan

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Somewhere in the North Pacific a Japanese whaling vessel is hunting a sperm whale mother and her calf.

06/12/2012 Nativegrl77 2 Comments

We can’t let Japan block the creation of a whale sanctuary in the South Atlantic.

Tell President Obama’s IWC delegation to take the lead on the South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary proposal.

Somewhere in the North Pacific a Japanese whaling vessel is hunting a sperm whale mother and her calf.

It’s just one of the 120 minkes, 50 Brydes, 100 sei and 10 sperm whales they plan to kill during this year’s hunt. But the hunt is not what the Japanese whaling program is concerned about at the moment.

Instead, they’re busy buying votes from small countries like the Solomon Islands and Antigua and Barbuda to kill a proposal at the upcoming International Whaling Commission (IWC) meetings that would create a permanent whale sanctuary in the South Atlantic.

This proposal represents one of the best opportunities we’ve ever had to protect whale populations in the South Atlantic. We can’t let Japan kill it. And that means we need strong leadership from President Obama’s delegation to the IWC.

Click here and urge the US delegation to the IWC to take the lead on the South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary proposal.

The proposed South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary stretches from the freezing waters of Antarctica to the warm waters of the equator. Most of the great whales are highly migratory, feeding in the nutrient rich waters of the Antarctic before traveling to tropical waters to give birth and suckle their young.

The establishment of the South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary would mean that the whales of the Southern Hemisphere could live their entire lives in an area free from the threat of commercial whaling.

I’ll be traveling to Panama for the IWC meetings this year as an official observer and will personally deliver your message to the US delegation. It’s critical that the US team knows there is widespread public support back home for this proposal. That’s why your message is so important.

Carmen, these whales have a right to live their lives without out the fear of being hunted. Take action now and tell the US delegation to the IWC to do everything in their power to make sure the South Atlantic Whale Sanctuary proposal passes.

I’ve been attending the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meetings as an observer for years now. And usually every year feels the same. This year is different. This year we have a real chance to take a giant step forward in terms of whale conservation in the South Atlantic.

I’ll be there. I hope you’ll join me by taking action.

Save the whales,

Phil Kline
Greenpeace Oceans Campaigner

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How to save the whales once and for all

01/12/2011 Nativegrl77

Tell President Obama to end commercial whaling once and for all by reforming the IWC. Click the button below to take action.

As you read this, the Japanese whaling fleet is busy killing whales in the Southern Ocean. Just like they did last year and just like they will again this time next year if nothing changes at the International Whaling Commission (IWC). But there’s hope.

Not only does President Obama have the power to make those changes; he’s already promised he would. Here’s what he told Greenpeace back in 2008:

“As president, I will ensure that the U.S. provides leadership in enforcing international wildlife protection agreements, including strengthening the international moratorium on commercial whaling. Allowing Japan to continue commercial whaling is unacceptable.”

It’s time for President Obama to keep his word and save the whales. Tell him to end commercial whaling once and for all by reforming the IWC.

Yesterday, I personally paid a visit to the White House to drop off a letter from Greenpeace that outlined the results of a recent poll we conducted. The results speak for themselves. An overwhelming amount of Americans — 83%! — want the President to stand by his campaign pledge to strengthen the international ban on commercial whaling.

I thought it was important for the President and his administration to know just how strongly the American public feels about this issue. This isn’t something that can be ignored or that is going to go away.

You have an important role to play in this. The President has to hear your voice and the voices of everyone who wants to save the whales. Help make yesterday’s delivery even more powerful by sending the President a message today.

We have to break this cycle. To save the whales once and for all we need to end whaling once and for all. That means no Japanese whaling fleet heading to the Southern Ocean next year and that means reforming the IWC. President Obama has the power to make that happen. And, together, we have the power to hold him to his word.

It’s time to make the IWC work for whales and not whalers.

For the whales,

John Hocevar
Ocean Campaigns Director

P.S. Last spring, we got the President’s attention. We can do it again but it is going to take the same type of effort. Please forward this on to everyone you know who loves whales after you take action.

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Baby Whale Bacon

12/17/2010 Nativegrl77

Please make your most generous gift right now to support this work.

“Baby whales are more tender, so the crew keeps that meat for themselves. They are perfect for unesu (whale bacon).”

This shocking witness testimony came from an ex-whaler at the trial of two Greenpeace Japan activists who were recently prosecuted in Tokyo for exposing corruption within Japan’s supposedly “scientific” whaling program.

Despite the overwhelming evidence brought forward at the trial, the Japanese whaling fleet is now steaming toward the Southern Ocean with plans to kill more baby whales for whale bacon.

Please rush Greenpeace your most generous support as we continue our work to shut down the Japanese whaling industry—once and for all!

The key to ending Japan’s taxpayer-funded whale hunt lies with the Japanese people, 95% of whom never or rarely eat whale meat and 69% of whom do NOT support whaling in the Southern Ocean.

That’s why Greenpeace is rallying public support within Japan to stop the slaughter, in addition to pressuring President Obama to fulfill his campaign promise of “strengthening the international moratorium on commercial whaling.”

Although Greenpeace fought tirelessly to pass the international whaling moratorium in 1986, the Japanese government continues to take advantage of a loophole in ban, which allows for “lethal scientific research.”

However, what the Greenpeace Japan activists exposed during their Tokyo trial is the fact that Japan’s “science” is nothing more than a whale meat embezzlement scandal in disguise.

Now, as we’ve seen reported in news outlets around the world, Japan is buying votes at the International Whaling Commission to have the whaling moratorium overturned so that they no longer have to hide behind the veil of “science.”

Please rush Greenpeace your most generous donation NOW.

We need your help to rally support within Japan and pressure President Obama to use his international influence to strengthen the whaling moratorium. Together, we can ensure that baby whale bacon is no longer on the menu.

For the whales,

John Hocevar
Ocean Campaigns Director

PS: Greenpeace cannot save the lives of these whales—or continue our campaigns to defend the oceans, stop global warming, and protect the forests—without your support. Please send your emergency contribution today!!

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Stop the Slaughter

12/08/2010 Nativegrl77

The Japanese fleet is planning to slaughter more than 1,000 whales this season.

As you read this e-mail, the Japanese whaling fleet is steaming towards the Southern Ocean to begin their annual whale slaughter. Their planned death “quota” this season: nearly 1,000 minke whales, 50 humpback whales, and 50 endangered fin whales.

We must stop this massacre now.

During the 2008 campaign, then-Senator Obama said, “As president, I will ensure that the U.S. provides leadership in enforcing international wildlife protection agreements, including the international moratorium on commercial whaling.” Three more whaling seasons have come and gone since Obama spoke those words, and no change has been made.

Please rush your most generous contribution as we put pressure on President Obama to fulfill his campaign promise!

“Allowing Japan to continue commercial whaling is unacceptable,” as President Obama himself has stated, and Greenpeace is rallying support to put a stop to the slaughter, once and for all.

Commercial whaling is not only unacceptable—it’s a violation of international law.

Picture a Japanese harpoon ship speeding through the Southern Ocean. Suddenly, the harpooner spots a mother whale and her calf. The sounds of the ocean are drowned out by the blasts of exploding-tip harpoons being fired at the whales.

The pair struggles to free themselves from the harpoon lines for nearly an hour, desperately thrashing their tails in the water, before a gunman finally steps onto the deck and shoots them dead. The mother whale and her baby are dragged up the ship’s slipway, leaving a long trail of blood behind them.

Much to our frustration, in a few days time this tragic scene will play out in the Southern Ocean over and over again. Greenpeace needs your help, and the help of President Obama, to put an end to the slaughter of our oceans’ most unique, intelligent, and emotional creatures.

Please help us stop this terrible massacre and save the lives of these whales with your most generous donation NOW.

Together, we can let Japan know that commercial whaling has no place in the 21st Century.

For the whales,

John Hocevar
Ocean Campaigns Director

PS: Greenpeace cannot save the lives of these whales—or continue our campaigns to stop global warming, protect our forests, and defend our oceans—without your support. Please rush your emergency contribution today!