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JAPAN NEWS AND DISCUSSION

Anti-corruption measures debated at whaling talks

National Jul. 12, 2011 - 04:12AM JST ( 30 )

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30 Comments

1

Love EnglishJul. 12, 2011 - 07:26AM JST

obstinacy has a new guardian = pity is the thinking that pressuring this country after the earthquake / tsunami would be unfair because those obstinate whaling advocates are busy mourning and grieving? wow!
1

Love EnglishJul. 12, 2011 - 07:32AM JST

audacity has a new champion = nation looking for international sympathy and aid which then at the same time entrenches it's internationally offensive practices in international jurisdictions - wow
3

DisillusionedJul. 12, 2011 - 08:02AM JST

I fail to see any relationship between Japan"s whaling and the tsunami disaster. Japan has been pulling the sympathy ploy for over half a century.
0

NetNinjaJul. 12, 2011 - 08:27AM JST

I agree wtih Disillusioned. The two have no connection at all. It's unfortunate that people in those fishing towns were taken by the Tsunami but somewhere another group is glad they were punished by nature.

Every effort should be made to expose Japan's schemes to buy votes. You can't blame them. It's the only way they know. They've been doing it for centuries, especially here in Japan. Cash in envelopes has always been the way here.

What I can't figure out is this. We don't need any IWC. It's Australia. They allow the Japanese (Who wanted their country in WWII) to cruise on down to their half of the world and harpoon whales..

Get your Coast Guard, turn them back around or blast em out of the water. Go fish off the coast of Fukushima.

It's time to reap what you sow.
0

paulinusaJul. 12, 2011 - 08:34AM JST

"Host nation Britain has proposed reforms to make the commission more transparent and effective."

That'll never fly, it's just not part of the whaling "tradition".
-2

MrDogJul. 12, 2011 - 09:09AM JST

Host nation Britain has proposed reforms to make the commission more transparent and effective. Its proposal would force governments to pay their membership fees by bank transfers, which can be easily traced, instead of cash or checks.

I'm sorry but I just actually laughed out loud here.

Do governments pay in cash now??? I have this image of Obama or someone going "okay, I've signed the aid agreement. Now I just have to pop off to the ATM, be right back".
1

PigletJul. 12, 2011 - 09:19AM JST

Do governments pay in cash now???

A lot of official government business in Japan is still done with cash, which doesn't help fighting against corruption as there is no paper trail that way. Corruption fighting schemes usually recommend to ban the use of cash for government and big business deals. This is already the case in some countries (in France, for example, any exchange of money above a specified amount cannot be done by cash, this is illegal).
0

Love EnglishJul. 12, 2011 - 10:44AM JST

@Piglet - u said it - if not for cash, the bubble would have been even more 'bubbly'; at least cash has teal currency as opposed to assets (property) that has NEVER been depreciated in spite of a global economic crisis etc...
0

Love EnglishJul. 12, 2011 - 10:45AM JST

Check under the matters of any savvy old person in Japan; I can't knock em for not wanting to pay taxes to these irresponsible clowns
0

CrickyJul. 12, 2011 - 11:04AM JST

Electric transfer of cash is 20 years behind the rest of the world in Japan. People carry ¥1000s in their wallet. WHY?

My guess is as you climb the ladder you need cash to give as a "gift" and leave no trace. So laws are weak and electric transfer shunned. Thus the Whaling industry is ingrained with corruption, lies and a false, failed business plan based on the premise that it's "tradition ".

Sea life of the coast is now toxic so go for it idiots.
1

NuckinFutzJul. 12, 2011 - 11:11AM JST

Japanese LOVE cash, especially in large fat envelopes passed under the table when nobody is looking! Cracking down on vote buying will knock the Japanese completely into a corner at the IWC. The ONLY reason so many 3rd and 4th world countries (with no coastlines) are even members is Japan's money. I'm sure the Japanese delegates will now be trying to bribe even more people to vote this proposal down!
0

Zenny11Jul. 12, 2011 - 11:17AM JST

BBC has a way more detailed report on this topic:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-14079749

Here you will see a different view and perspective, covering a lot more of what will be discussed at the meeting.
0

Spidapig24Jul. 12, 2011 - 11:46AM JST

Cricky,

Sea life of the coast is now toxic so go for it idiots

The problem is that these idiots dont just whale around their own waters they go into other countries backyards and do it too.
0

CrickyJul. 12, 2011 - 11:54AM JST

I know, but pushing for " local traditional whaling" when the sea is toxic, is amusing
-5

sunhawkJul. 12, 2011 - 12:05PM JST

whale is delicious, japan should grow a pair and just announce its going to out right commerical whale, like iceland.
-5

sunhawkJul. 12, 2011 - 12:08PM JST

oh also, what a wonderful country japan is. where a man can walk down the street with a large amount of cash in his pocket with out fear.
1

Spidapig24Jul. 12, 2011 - 12:08PM JST

sunhawk,

whale is delicious, japan should grow a pair and just announce its going to out right commerical whale, like iceland.

Thats fine as long as they only do their commercial whaling around their own waters like Iceland do. Im all for it, that way the Japanese who eat whale can also increase their radiation intake. Great idea sunhawk.
1

smithinjapanJul. 12, 2011 - 12:13PM JST

"The move comes in the wake of allegations last year that Japan has been using aid money and personal favors to buy votes. Japan denies any wrongdoing."

No surprise here; it's well known that Japan bribes nations to get votes, including prostitution and wining and dining. I agree with above posters as well that the March 11th disasters have NO part in the issue of whaling, and if Japan plays the victim card (yet again) to try and gain sympathy I will be outright disgusted.

sunhawk: "whale is delicious, japan should grow a pair and just announce its going to out right commerical whale, like iceland."

problem is they do not do the whaling in their own waters. If they did, there would be nothing international commissions or what have you could do. As it is, they go to the Atlantic and recognized whale sanctuaries of all places, and are now talking about sending the Japanese coast guard to assist them! For a person suggesting others should not impose their beliefs/culture on others stating that Japan do whatever it wants around the world is more than slightly hypocritical.
-7

sunhawkJul. 12, 2011 - 12:19PM JST

well at least japan fishing off the antartic isn't anywhere nearly as bad as what china does when it comes to claiming and fishing in others waters. china claims water all the way down to the north coast of malayasia.
0

Spidapig24Jul. 12, 2011 - 12:22PM JST

sunhawk,

well at least japan fishing off the antartic isn't anywhere nearly as bad as what china does when it comes to claiming and fishing in others waters. china claims water all the way down to the north coast of malayasia.

Oh no here comes the nationalistic sentiment!!!

Yes China may claim those waters but what does that have to do with whaling. Australia claims the waters that the Japanese whale in so really you are being just as bad as China then by fishing in other peoples claimed waters true?
-2

steve@CPFCJul. 12, 2011 - 12:24PM JST

sunhawk; So two wrongs make it right?
0

smithinjapanJul. 12, 2011 - 12:51PM JST

sunhawk: "well at least japan fishing off the antartic isn't anywhere nearly as bad as what china does when it comes to claiming and fishing in others waters."

We aren't talking about China and land disputes, we're talking about Japan and the corruption of the IWC as a whole. Even if you DO want to side-step the issues and talk about what you perceive as the wrong-doing of an unrelated nation, does what China do make Japan's actions okay?

The thing I find most funny, in a sad sense, is that they are only DEBATING an end to corruption instead of simply trying to end it.
3

bookowlsJul. 12, 2011 - 01:01PM JST

Japan denies any wrongdoing.

Of course it does....
-5

Hide SuzukiJul. 12, 2011 - 01:24PM JST

As always, Japan is somehow always the target although Norway and other countries also hunt whales. Blame Japan for everything as always JTers !!!!!
1

smithinjapanJul. 12, 2011 - 01:43PM JST

Hide Suzuki: "As always, Japan is somehow always the target although Norway and other countries also hunt whales"

Once again, where do the aforementioned countries do their whaling as opposed to Japan doing it in a whale sanctuary in the Antarctic? And have those nations been basically caught bribing others as Japan has? What's more, I don't believe Norway or Iceland (the other country mentioned in the article) purport to be whaling for 'scientific purposes' while in reality pushing the meat onto elementary school kids through their school lunch program or to old men in fishing villages who already have 10 times the normal mercury levels in their nails and hair. Out of the three nations mentioned, Japan is also the leader in terms of number of whales killed.

But here, let's look at the article again:

"About 1,500 whales are killed each year by Japan, Iceland and Norway. Japan, which kills the majority of whales, insists its hunt is for scientific research, but more whale meat and whale products end up in Japanese restaurants than in laboratories."

Don't blame JT posters for posting the facts.
0

MrDogJul. 12, 2011 - 02:43PM JST

About 1,500 whales are killed each year by Japan, Iceland and Norway. Japan, which kills the majority of whales, insists its hunt is for scientific research, but more whale meat and whale products end up in Japanese restaurants than in laboratories.

Well, to be honest, I think we all know JT's stance on whaling is hardly unbiased. I wonder where they got that information from (figures, etc) However, putting that aside. I think it is fair to say that when you have an animal, weighing as much as the whales that are hunted do, it's obvious that "more whale meat and whale products end up in Japanese restaurants than in laboratories".

They don't need tonnes and tonnes of whale blubber or muscle to do the research that they are doing.
1

Patrick SmashJul. 12, 2011 - 04:56PM JST

I'm not so sure that the good people of Iceland and Norway would support a whaling program that relied so heavily on their taxes. Especially when their taxes are used to buy prostitutes and hand cash to poor nations with no coastline and no interest in whaling so that they can buy votes that allow even more tax money to be wasted on going off to Antarctica in huge medieval-type expeditions to hunt whales they claim are abundant in and around their own seas, apparently for research purposes.

There are good reasons for criticising Japan's whaling program and trying to cut down on corruption. The criticism of Japan is location, location, location, not just a pointless attack on Japan for being Japanese. I don't care if they eat whale, but I don't see why this programshould be a tax-funded lie about research in a whale sanctuary off the coast of Australia.
-1

FireyReiJul. 12, 2011 - 05:47PM JST

Japan does the majority of whaling, so Japan gets the spotlight. There is no anti-Japanese sentiment here, it is anti-whaling - whaling done by Japan more than other countries.

Additionally, I do not care if whale meat is delicious, these mammals are endangered. Sheep etc. are not.

Finally, whaling for research purposes? What type of research? Gourmet?
1

Stranger_in_a_Strange_LandJul. 13, 2011 - 01:49AM JST

Japan should just leave the IWC as they have zero spirit of compromise and will never agree to any amount of whaling, period. Total waste of time messing around with that group.
0

MrDogJul. 13, 2011 - 09:38AM JST

Additionally, I do not care if whale meat is delicious, these mammals are endangered. Sheep etc. are not.

Neither are Minke whales, or dolphins. So, you must have no problem whatsoever with those being caught then?