The whaling issue: Conservation, confusion, and casuistry

Abstract

Morishita's ''multiple analysis'' of the whaling issue [Morishita J. Multiple analysis of the whaling issue: Understanding the dispute by a matrix. Marine Policy 2006;30:802-8] is essentially a restatement of the Government of Japan's whaling policy, which confuses the issue through selective use of data, unsubstantiated facts, and the vilification of opposing perspectives. Here, we deconstruct the major problems with Morishita's article and provide an alternative view of the whaling dispute. For many people in this debate, the issue is not that some whales are not abundant, but that the whaling industry cannot be trusted to regulate itself or to honestly assess the status of potentially exploitable populations. This suspicion has its origin in Japan's poor use of science, its often implausible stock assessments, its insistence that culling is an appropriate way to manage marine mammal populations, and its relatively recent falsification of whaling and fisheries catch data combined with a refusal to accept true transparency in catch and market monitoring. Japanese policy on whaling cannot be viewed in isolation, but is part of a larger framework involving a perceived right to secure unlimited access to global marine resources. Whaling is inextricably tied to the international fisheries agreements on which Japan is strongly dependent; thus, concessions made at the IWC would have potentially serious ramifications in other fora. r

The safety of bycatch: South Korean responses to the moratorium on commercial whaling

“…This argument implies that the whale meat market is largely supplied by meat from illegal whaling. The argument contrasts directly with the anti-whaling activists' portrayal of Japan, where they claim that demand for whale meat is precipitously declining (Clapham et al, 2007).…”

What Drives Japanese Whaling Policy?

“…Stakeholders act under significant forces not always directly relevant to the conservation or exploitation of wildlife, or indeed, the marginal profits available from whaling. It is argued that it is domestic Japanese politics (Clapham et al, 2007) and attempts to create new norms in more economically important fisheries agreements that now drive the demand for continued whaling.…”

Wash and Spin Cycle Threats to Tropical Biodiversity

“…One need only examine the political quagmire emerging from analogous washing tactics employed by opponents (Kalland 1993) and proponents (Hirata 2005) of the commercial whaling industry (Morishita 2006, Clapham et al 2007. Indeed, the International Whaling Commission and its associated members provide poignant reminders of how impotent international policy can become when science takes a back seat to marketing in biodiversity and natural-resource management (Aron et al 2000, Schweder 2001, Herrera & Hoagland 2006.…”