Japans right to whaling is legally justified Essay

Japans right to whaling is legally justified - Essay Example Whaling remains one of the most hotly debated topics amongst various global issues related to environmental protection, and revolves around the main question as whether humans should keep up the practice of hunting whales. Even though the scientists believe that under current wildlife protection management system it is unlikely that whales will become extinct, the practice of whaling is still widely condemned (Nagasaki, 1993). The anti-whaling sentiments took form mainly during the late 1970s when many anti-whaling and non-whaling countries joined the International Whaling Commission (IWC), in order â€Å"to provide for the proper conservation of whale stocks and thus make possible the orderly development of the whaling industry† (International Whaling Commission, The Convention, 2003). In 1982, IWC members voted with three-fourth majority that brought forth a break on commercial whaling. In this context the text (paragraph 10(e)- classification of stocks) that implement ban o n commercial whaling states â€Å"Notwithstanding the other provisions of paragraph 10, catch limits for the killing for commercial purposes of whales from all stocks for the 1986 coastal and the 1985/86 pelagic seasons and thereafter shall be zero† (International Whaling Commission, The Convention, 2003). The 1986 moratorium banning commercial whaling led to the formation of a strong opposition against countries like Iceland, Norway and Japan that continue to hunt whales, which they claim to be primarily for scientific research work. Here the opposition to whaling now relates to a compete banning of whale killing in any form, commercial or for scientific reason. Countries like Australia and the US along with NGOs like Greenpeace claim that with some species of the whales being in list of endangered animals, whaling in any form must be banned.