Japan ignores IWC warning against whaling

Tokyo

Despite the International Whaling Commission demanded Japan to provide more information to prove whaling is really for scientific research, Japan said it would resume its annual whale hunt.

The IWC said Friday that Japan had failed to provide enough details to explain the scientific basis of its "NEWREP-A proposal", which would target 3,996 minke whales in the Antarctic over 12 years.

Joji Morishita, Tokyo's commissioner to the global conservation body, responded late Friday telling that the country would answer the queries from the IWC but its intentions would not be altered. 

"There has been no change to our plan," Morishita said.

"As far as scientific points being raised (by the IWC), we would like to respond with sincerity as much as possible," he said, according to Jiji Press.

He added Japan would "conduct additional analyses" to gain more support for the new programme, Kyodo News said. 

Regardless of the ruling by IWC, Japan can still press ahead with the "lethal sampling" hunt in the Southern Ocean, scheduled to begin in December, as it is ultimately up to individual countries to issue permits for whaling on scientific grounds.