In 1986, Japan withdrew its opposition to the International Whaling Commission’s (IWC) moratorium on commercial whaling. The following year, Japan announced a large-scale scientific whaling program designed to assess whale stocks. Their goal? A resumption of commercial whaling with set, sustainable limits.
Many experts have questioned the scientific validity of this program, suggesting that Japan’s research is nothing more than a front for continued whaling.
Japan maintains that its methods are sound.
Japan’s scientific whaling program continues to this day; in fact, it has grown considerably. Activist groups like the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society claim that Japan’s whaling practices violate international law. Japan claims the direct-action tactics of Sea Shepherd are illegal, in essence a form of eco-terrorism.
