MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Japan suffers two defeats in Whaling meeting

Australia and other anti-whaling nations achieved two victories on Friday at the International Whaling Commission's annual general meeting currently underway in the Caribbean island of St. Kitts.

Japan proposed to delete a key item from the agenda, but New Zealand made a point of order questioning Japan's motives. What followed was three hours of debate, with the anti-whaling countries securing a slim victory.

Japan proposed to remove small cetaceans from the IWC agenda which would involve the management of dolphins and pilot whales, killer whales - in fact about 65 species of cetaceans.

New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Ireland, from the anti-whaling nations group, all raised key concerns about this, arguing that if removed from the agenda then small cetaceans would not have any protection under the IWC.

Japan has spent years lobbying developing nations to join the IWC and wrest power from the majority anti-whaling bloc. Environmental groups accuse these countries of voting with Japan in return for aid, a charge which the Japanese deny.

The big question is whether or not Japan will be able to officially resume commercial whaling and not just continue whaling under the guise of scientific research. To resume commercial whaling, Japan, Norway and Iceland, would need 75% of the votes.

Another favourable vote, by a slim majority 33 to 30, was on secret ballots. Every year, Japan attempts to introduce the secret ballots, which would mean that countries could vote without disclosing their vote. Anti-whaling countries fear that more countries would vote with Japan if they didn't have to disclose their position.

Japan's deputy commissioner to the IWC, Joji Morishita, interviewed by BBC said that the organization has become too concerned with conservation and was acting with arrogance.

"Many Japanese citizens think that Westerners, [the] outside world, are imposing their own value code on Japan on an emotional basis, and naturally they think they're bullies or... arrogant."

He added: "Allowing sustainable use of abundant species while protecting the depleted... we don't see the problem with that. It's exactly the same as conservation and management of any other wildlife or fishery resources."

To try to erode Japan's support, environmental groups have been campaigning in some of the small developing nations which traditionally support Japan. A survey commissioned by WWF suggested there was a majority opinion against whaling in all 10 of the Caribbean and Pacific states in which they polled.