Whaling ships return home from Antarctic with no catch

Japanese whaling ships returned home from the Antarctic on Saturday for the first time in nearly 30 years with no catch onboard, after a U.N. court ordered an end to their annual hunt, local media reported.

Wonderful news. And I'll bet there are still tons of unused whale meat in the stockpile.

Prayers are heard... Good news !

So...they actually did research for the first time, huh. I would congratulate them were it not for the farcical nature of the whole charade.

This "new" research is as fake as the "old" research.

Could be fake Paul but no whales were harmed. If they want to chase whales and take non lethal samples it is not a issue.

What's the catch?

What's the catch?

@Joe: Isn't it obvious? It's all just a pretense to resume whaling next season.

It's not even a pretense - they've already stated they will continue whaling under the conditions set by the ICJ ruling.

I'm not sure what the problem is here - there was a ruling, they are abiding by it, and have stated their intention to abide by it. So there's nothing to criticize them for.

Japanese whaling is as anachronistic as nostalgia for "all the wonderful things Japan did for Asia under Japanese imperialism" -- both ideas are sponsored by the same Japanese hierarchy.

Please, Abe-San, consider a world in which the restoration of the whale population is part of the restoration of the oceans -- Japan is after all an island country.

“By collecting scientific data, we aim to resume commercial whaling"

I thought it was research, not commercial whaling. I also thought commercial whaling is illegal.

Some good news for now. The whole point of the ruling is this: Japan wasn't prohibited from continuing whaling. However they could have used the ruling as a face saver to drop their whole "research" program altogether. An independent court gave them that way out, one where they weren't seen to succumb to international pressure. Too bad they were too stubborn to take it

So how much did this "research" cost the tax payers this time?

Let's hope this sets an eternal precedent. Stay out of sanctuaries and save tax money to rebuild Tohoku.

Sorry but Japan scientists are pretty dumb if year after year the do the same scientific tests again and again. Maybe they should just ask someone else for their results.

Lip service. This was about as scientific a mission as "soy-sauce or mayonnaise". In all likelihood it was a trip to count how many they could do 'lethal research' on next time around and how much money they'll get by selling the meat.

@tina ah racist tina shows her ugly side again, inferiority complex is a mental trait not something in the DNA, if you feel inferior then theres a good chance you are.

Sorry but Japan scientists are pretty dumb if year after year the do the same scientific tests again and again. Maybe they should just ask someone else for their results.

In calling someone else dumb, you have shown your own lack of knowledge on how science works. You cannot track changes in population by doing a test once and leaving it, you need to get numbers from year to year to see the changes.

I suggest you leave science to the scientists.

Finally a whaling story at JT that correctly calls it an exemption rather than a loophole. Although the story still doesn't mention the fact that the exemption REQUIRES the meat to be processed, rather the story tries to make it sound nefarious.

So...they actually did research for the first time, huh.

They have done research EVERY time. Even the IWC admits that and agrees that the data Japan has provided is useful.

the restoration of the whale population

All the whale species Japan has hunted over the past 30 years are showing stable or increasing populations.

thought it was research, not commercial whaling.

It was research. And the aim of the research was to show that a resumption of commercial whaling is sustainable.

An independent court gave them that way out

The independent court also specifically explained how Japan could modify their research plan to be in compliance with the regulations and thus continue their research whaling.

Stay out of sanctuaries

For over half the countries in the world (including Japan) there is no sanctuary.

Sorry but Japan scientists are pretty dumb

Japan scientists aren't the dumb ones. They fully understand their data and results. The dumb ones are the IWC who continue to say they don't have enough data to evaluate the applicable species as required by the moratorium. So Japan continues to collect data for the IWC so they can have enough data to do their jobs.

For petes sake, you wanna eat some whale, there are plenty just off shore, no need to go gallivanting to the southern hemisphere!!! IDIOTS~!

Idiots are people who either can not read or are unable to accept thge reality that;

Scientific Whaling is supported by the IWC under the IWC Scientific Comittee because data is needed to manage whale stocks, which is called "Conservation". Conservation does not mean "leave them alone at all costs" that's "preservation". Whales are as sentient as cows and are a natural marine resource that ,properly managed can be utilized sustainably. THe Moratorium on commercial whaling went into effect with as a "moratorium" meaning a temporary cease of action, not a BAN which is n. This is because under IWCs charter the Moratoriums and Sanctuaries are tools to assist in the proper management of whale stocks for the Whalijg Industry. The Southern Ocean where Japanese Scientic Whaling operates are INTERNATIONAL WATERS, not Australian or New Zealamd Territory. Haing a claim that isn't recognized by the entire world is not ownership. IWC Artcile VIII specifially exempts Scientific Whaling from Moratoriums and Sanctuaries. 7, IWC Article VIII specifically requires that nations participating in Scientific Whaling process the meat, ie; for consumption.This means Japan would have to consume the whale meat even if they didn't want to. The ICJ Ruling did not end Scientific Whaling, It ordered a stop to the then Jarpa II program and outlined what changes would be needed to meet the ICJ's requirements. That is what is comming, and it will be in accordance with the ICJ ruling.

ossan, utter non-sense, there is ZERO NEED for J-boats in the southern hemisphere when there are plenty of whales in coastal waters & if they take a few to eat few would give a damn!!

If they want to research stuff, I invite these scientists to my yard to research all the slugs & other little critters I host in my immediate environs, no need to travel half way around the world to research, plenty to check out here in Japan!

These trips to the Antarctic wasting my taxes needs to stop, nothing valuable happening there simple as that!

@GW, you say OssanAmerica's comments are non-sense yet don't provide any counter to any of his comments. The whales off the coast of Japan have significantly higher levels of toxins, mostly due to China's burning of coal. The whale stocks around Japan are quite small and thus can't sustain as large an annual hunt, Japan does do some hunting in their coastal waters and since the few that would give a damn are the militant fanatics they would cause just as much problem as they do around Antarctica.

About time. Don't they understand that nobody wants to eat whale meat which contain mercury & other toxins? The last thing government should be doing is feeding this to kids.

Well said Ossan America. The IWC's mission is to replenish stocks so that whaling can be resumed some day. Those of you who are pro-science (not just science that supports your position) should look into the research that shows larger whales such as blue whales are still endangered and populations haven't rebounded as much as other whale species because they are being out competed for their breeding grounds by minke whales. Minke whales of the southern ocean by the way have never been listed on the endangered species list. Why not then cull their numbers to help our blue whales?

Coconut E3 you are mixing up dolphins with whale meat. Baleen whale meat from the Southern Hemisphere is low in mercury because they feed so low on the food chain , and because of the lower amount of industrial pollution compared to the northern hemisphere.

Again, people wouldn't care so much if Japan limited itself to coastal whaling.(As Norway and Iceland do) It is the whole whaling in Antarctica issue that has people riled up.

Mike O,

whaling has NEVER been big in Japan, a few coastal communities have some tradition, the rest of Japan, pretty much ZIP!

Most of the whale eaten was after WWII when the US thought use of whale meat would help when protein was in short supply, those days are LONG gone!

Most Japanese at best occasionally nibble on whale/dolphin/porpose meat, that's why freezers are FULL of old meat.

There is little to no market for the stuff, a bit of coastal whaling will easily fulfill any needs & not make Japan look so stupid in the eyes of the world

GW,

I NEVER said it was or ever had been big.

If there is little to no market then allow return to commercial whaling with sustainable quotas and the free market will cause the industry to contract.

But as has been pointed out already whales from the coast of Japan have significantly higher levels of toxins.

Also, I realize it is excessively long but why don't you use my whole name? Why the lack of common courtesy?

So they prove themselves that "research" can be done without mass-killing whales.

So they should have no excuse to return to the old way of "research."

Precisely

So they prove themselves that "research" can be done without mass-killing whales.

Ah no. They proved that SOME data can be collected non-lethally.

Well actually that fact has been known and Japan has said for decades that SOME data can be collected non-lethally. But even the decidedly anti-whaling IWC agrees that SOME data CAN'T be collected without lethal means.

The two ships did not face any attacks by anti-whaling activists during their three-months voyage, the daily added.

It's about time that the anti-whaling activists finally obeyed the court ruling that ordered them to stay away from the whalers.