Save the Whale

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Japan continues to hunt whales every year despite it almost being 30 years since the ban on commercial whaling came into effect.  They say that they hunt whales for "scientific research" but in reality it is nothing to do with science.

Whales are already struggling to survive against pollution, climate change, ship strikes and entanglement in fishing gear as well as Japan's harpoons.  As I type this post (July 3rd) HSI are in Panama attending the 64th Annual Meeting of the International Whaling Commission, where they will fight for the whales.

We can help by clicking here and telling the Japanese prime minister that whaling is a inhumane, a dying industry and now is the right time to stop.

Shocking News: Amazon profits from whaling

I was shocked and disappointed to hear the news that web giant Amazon.com have been selling hundreds of whale products on it's Japanese subsidiary Amazon.jp.  Despite saying on it's website that it is "always looking for ways to further reduce environmental impact" Amazon.jp has been selling products from endangered fin whales and whales killed in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

Not only does killing endangered whales contradict their above statement, it is also cruel and inhumane.

Please click here and contact Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos asking him to ban the sale of all whale products on Amazon.jp.

Updated on Tuesday 28th February 2012

Since writing this post I have been contacted by Amazon.com who informed me that the products mentioned are no longer for sale.  Excellent news!

Animals in Japan need our help.

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The coldwetnose blog brought Mayhew International’s campaign to my attention.  

Taken from Mayhew International’s website:  Mayhew International works to promote companion animal welfare and the humane management of homeless cats and dogs through a network of community animal care initiatives. Our work with vets interested in this area of animal welfare has a special significance for international development, benefiting communities in developing countries, many of whom rely on their animals for support.

In March this year Japan suffered the most powerful earthquake since records began, this subsequently triggering an huge tsunami.  The earthquake reached a magnitude of 8.9 on the Richter scale and has caused mass death and destruction.  A state of emergency was declared at the Fukushima nuclear power plant after the disaster caused pressure to exceed normal levels.  

Eight months on from the disaster Mayhew International reports that the situation in Japan is still chaotic especially for the animals in the region.  Months ago when people were ordered to vacate the area 20km around the Fukushima nuclear power plant they were told they could not take their animals with them and would only be absent for a few days, which wasn’t the case as people have been absent for a lot longer.  Animals were left inside houses and yards and livestock were left in small pens with only a few days worth of food and water.  Some animal groups managed to get around the barriers and reach some animals, although sadly many animals have died due to starvation and dehydration.  Now there is a threat that the evacuation zone will be extended to 30km and authorities have again informed people they will not be able to take pets with them when they are evacuated.

Mayhew International is urging us to join them in pressuring the Japanese government to set aside housing which allows pets to stay with their owners. 

This action is slightly more taxing and will involve time and a slight expense however I am sure you will agree of the worthy cause.  

Please print off several copies of this petition (PDF) and get as many people as you can to sign and post them all together to the following people and addresses:

Mr. Ryu Matsumoto, Cabinet Office, Government of Japan, 1-6-1 Nagata-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8914

Mr. Yorihisa Matsuno, The Democratic Party of Japan, #240 House of Representatives, 2-1-2 Nagata-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100-8982

Mr. Kouriki Jojima, The Democratic Party of Japan, 2-27 Miyamoto-cho, Kawasaki-ku, Kawasaki-shi, Kanagawa 210-0004

Due to the chaos in Japan it will be a good idea to send the post by express mail to ensure it reaches there safely.  People have been sending these petitions for quite sometime already and it has made a slight difference with the government allowing people back to collect their pets, although an update back in May states there is still a problem with animals being allowed into the evacuation centres and as yet there seems to be no news on the facilities available for animals so it is still well worth reminding the government that they do need to make provisions.

Please join Mayhew International’s Facebook page for all further news and updates. 

Working together with Mayhew is the Animal Rescue Kansai (ARK) organisation, so check out how you can help at their website.

Thank you.

Good News about Whaling in the Antarctic

 

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It's a pleasure to share the following great news with you!

Japan has called its Antarctic whaling fleet home which means there will be no more whaling there this year!  Last season 507 whales were killed and in comparison 172 whales have been killed this year.  It would be ideal if no whales were killed but at least this is progress as this could have huge impact on the future of Antarctic whaling.  For WDCS's complete article have a look here.

Whales in the North are still a target for whaling fleets belonging to Japan, Norway and Iceland so we do need to keep the pressure up.  If you can spare some time to visit the WDCS site, they have prepared an e-mail for you already which you can send to the US government asking them to take action.  Click here to send. 

Remember to tell your friends...

WHALING BAN STAYS!

After two days of talks in Agadir - Moscow, delegates from the IWC were unable to agree on a proposal which would see commercial whaling being legalised. Therefore the ban still stands. However, Japan, Iceland and Norway continue whaling outside the IWC sanctions.

Despite presentations by pro-whaling advocated the majority were not convinced by their arguments that killing whales via commercial whaling was acceptable. It has also been rejected that quotas be given whilst the ban still stands. (Quotas meaning the amount of whales killed)

Australia and the Latin America countries were clear in their opposition and after weeks of uncertainly the EU took a strong position and rejected the proposed deal but is still willing to negotiate. The pro-deal advocates did not push their proposal to a vote so they didn’t risk being publicly rejected.

WDCS anticipated further discussions but calls on the world to realise that the old world view of whaling is over. Nicolas Entrup the spokesperson for WDCS in Agadir says “We now call on governments to work together to ensure the moratorium is implemented fully and effectively ending commercial, and so-called scientific whaling, which have no place in the 21st century. WDCS believes that the IWC has a strong future, but not one that legitimizes this cruel, unmanageable and unnecessary industry.”

The IWC meeting now continues and will now be looking at agenda items including a demand from Denmark that Greenland is allowed to expand it’s hunt to include 10 humpback whales per year.

WDCS Report
IFAW Report

Action Alert: Whaling

It's been a while since I posted some campaigns and action alerts so here is a call for help from the Humane Society of the US asking for people to assist them in contacting President Obama and asking him to make the moratorium on commercial whaling stronger as the current plan being considered by the International Whaling Commission which would give approval to Japan, Norway and Iceland participating in commercial whaling.

If you follow this link it will take you to a ready prepared e-mail but you may need to spend a bit of extra time on this one as the HSUS ask you to add your own comments.

Here are some suggested additions:

The proposal will not save whales--it will kill them.

It will allow whaling in the Antarctic Southern Ocean Sanctuary.

It will stimulate new whaling markets rather than close out struggling subsidized industries.

The proposal is not based on sound science. The quota numbers used are based on politics.

The proposal does not address animal welfare issues.

The proposal was developed using a process that prevented civil society from having any input or role in the negotiations.

I had a bit of trouble with the link so if it doesn't work please e-mail me at the.animal.news@googlemail.com and let me know and I'll direct you to the page another way.

Take Action on Whaling in Norway

Some wording and figures taken from Peta UK.

Despite an international ban on commercial whaling, Norway will this year hunt and kill nearly 1,300 minke whales in defiance of the ban. Only one per cent of Norwegians eat whale meat regularly and the majority agree that the suffering whales endure is unacceptable. Despite this, this year's quota is the highest in 25 years.

Norway has a new Animal Welfare Act however has made no provision for marine mammals within the Act. There is no known humane way to kill whales, they are shot with exploding harpoons and rifles and can endure an hour of suffering before death.

It is not only Norway who are rebelling against the ban, both Japan and Iceland also continue to practice whaling.

How Can We Help?

Please follow this link which will direct you to a ready prepared letter to Norwegian Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg asking him to stop the suffering of whales today and to live up to Norway's desire to be seen as a progressive and modern country by promoting whale watching, not whale hunting. Simply enter your name and e-mail address, click send and make a difference. If you can spare some more time perhaps edit the letter to voice your own opinion about this.