1 February 2007
The message is spreading
Posted by Sakyo, on the Esperanza
Back in New Zealand, I was very surprised that so many people came to the Open Boat. At one point, I even joined the ship's tour with other visitors. When a volunteer guide talked about about how "most Japanese people don't really eat whale meat" and "two thirds of the people don't support their Government's whaling in the high seas", I could hear/feel that people around me were really interested in hearing this.
At the end of the tour, people held up a "speech bubble", saying "I love Japan, but whaling breaks my heart", which I think it"s a great message for Japanese people to easily understand that we are not attacking Japan or the Japanese, but instead that we're opposing whaling.
I was very happy to see that so many people were willing to take in this message. Because, I thought people outside Japan has been misinformed by the Japanese government that Japanese people support whaling and are willing to eat whale meat. This is not true at all.
Even the Conservation Minister of New Zealand said "because in the end it will be the public of Japan that persuades their Government to change their whaling program".
I think now at least in New Zealand, our message has started spreading.
If you want to know more about the real situation of whaling in Japan, please visit www.whalelove.org/en
It's an internet TV program inspired by popular Japanese reality TV show.
- Sakyo
Comments
Why is the campaign focused on Japan anyway? Iceland, Norway, Russia, the USA, Greenland, St. Vincent and the Grenadines - all nations that are catching whales for food. Perhaps you guys need a "we love Greenland, Iceland, Japan, Russia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, USA, but we are against whaling" campaign instead. Just a suggestion.
Also, what about small cetaceans? Apparently people in the Solomon Islands consume dolphins, people in the Marshall Islands utilise sea turtles as food, and people from the Caribbean harvest pilot whales.
Perhaps the Japanese people won't feel that they are being singled out, once Greenpeace actually stops singling Japan out.
Posted by: david at February 1, 2007 11:06 AM
David, I think you'll find that Greenpeace in the past (including in the 1970s (remember those?)) hassled Russia, Spain and Australia for their part in industrial whaling. Those countries have now stopped. In Russia, only subsistence whaling remains, as in the USA etc. We continue to 'single out' as you put it, Iceland and Norway. Japan takes far more whales than anyone else, and takes them from the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.
Yes, what about small cetaceans - if you feel they should be protected, maybe then you're starting to understand what we're on about!
Posted by: Dave on the Esperanza at February 2, 2007 8:00 AM
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