Anti-whaling

Anti-whaling refers to actions taken by those who seek to end whaling in various forms, whether locally or globally in the pursuit of marine conservation. Such activism is often a response to specific conflicts with pro-whaling countries and organizations that practice commercial whaling and/or research whaling, as well as with indigenous groups engaged in subsistence whaling. Some anti-whaling factions have received criticism and legal action for extreme methods including violent direct action. The term anti-whaling may also be used to describe beliefs and activities related to these actions.

Anti-whaling activism has a short history compared to other forms of activism and environmental awareness. Early members of environmental organizations began protesting whale hunts around the world in the 20th century. These actions were in direct response to the global depletion of whale populations due to over-exploitation by the whaling industry and the failure of international whaling regulations.

Sea Shepherd has repeatedly attempted to highlight and stop the territory's pilot whale hunt. It launched its latest action in the area, involving two vessels and dozens of activists, two months ago.

During a typical whale hunt, three-to-six metre (10-to-20 foot) sea mammals are driven by a flotilla of small boats into a bay or the mouth of a fjord before being killed by hand -- a "grind" that many locals defend as a cultural right.

The whale meat and blubber are consumed by locals and considered delicacies.

The League of Nations raised concerns about the over-exploitation of whale stocks and called for conservation measures in 1925. This eventually led to the Geneva Convention for the Regulation of Whaling which was presented in 1931 but did not enter into force until 1934 and was completely ignored by Japan and Germany.

In 1937 the International Conference on Whaling added limits on pelagic whaling in order to prevent excessive exploitation (and specifically the extinction of the Blue whale), thereby creating the International Agreement for the Regulation of Whaling.

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