Tell Australian PM to say NO to Japanese whaling in Australian Antarctic Territorial waters
Please sign to help the whales and have your say by telling the Australian Prime Minister, Hon John Howard, that the Government should be protecting the Australian Whale Sanctuary, and that it is totally unacceptable for the PM to allow the Japanese whalers to illegally enter and slaughter whales in their supposed safe sanctuary in Australian waters.
Japan is resuming illegal commercial whaling of humpback, minke and fin whales from the Whale Sanctuary in these waters under the loose guise of 'scientific research.' The Japanese whaling fleet is preparing to leave its home port within a month for the Southern Ocean to commence their horrific and inhumane slaughter of these highly intelligent mammals. These whales are near the brink of extinction and it is unnecessary to kill 1 whale for scientific research purposes as successful non-lethal methods for whale research are in use today. In July 2000 The Australian Whale Sanctuary was created under the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act 1999, and includes the waters within Australia's 200 nautical mile exclusive economic zone adjacent to the Australian Antarctic Territory. Under the EPBC Act hunting whales in the Australian Whale Sanctuary is a serious offence attracting heavy penalties.
The Japanese whaling operation is in violation of many international laws and regulations, including:
• Violating the Southern Ocean Sanctuary
• violating the (IWC) moratorium on commercial whaling.
• Targeting endangered fin and humpback whales that are protected under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. (CITES).
• The Japanese whalers are also in violation of the Australian laws protecting the Australian Antarctic Territorial waters.
“every drop of rain that falls ends up in the mouths of whales – it is up to humans to control what substances enter that raindrop during its journey to the ocean”
