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Greenpeace has urged the Australian Government to send a vessel to the Antarctic, as the environmental group prepares to harass Japanese whaling vessels with its own ship.
Japan is planning to kill 935 minke whales, 50 fin whales and, for the first time in 40 years, 50 humpback whales this summer season under its so-called research programme.
Conservationists say the fin whale is an endangered species, and the humpback is still under threat.
Greenpeace and the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society are both planning to take action against the whalers, as they did last Antarctic summer.
Greenpeace spokesman Dave Walsh said the protest ship Esperanza would leave Auckland this weekend facing the task of finding the Japanese ships in a vast area of ocean.
"We've been dealing with them quite a bit so we know where to find them," he said.
He said he did not know if the fleet would hunt inside the Australian-declared Antarctic Whale Sanctuary.
On board the Esperanza will be activists from many countries including Australia, New Zealand, Philippines, the US, Canada, Brazil, Chile, Italy, Russia, Spain, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Finland, Germany, Turkey, India and even Japan.
Greenpeace has joined the International Fund for Animal Welfare, Humane Society International, Project Jonah and the Whale, and Dolphin Conservation Society in calling on the Australian federal Government to honour its election promise to protect the whales.
On November 19 Australia's Ambassador to Japan, Murray McLean, registered Australia's formal protest at the impending "inhumane" harvest under Japan's scientific whaling programme.
The new Labor Government's policy is to use naval vessels to monitor whaling activities to gather evidence for a potential international legal challenge.
The groups have also urged Australia to challenge Japan's scientific whaling programme in the Southern Ocean.
"As an immediate measure to protect the whales, the groups urge Environment Minister Peter Garrett to make a formal protest under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species [CITES] about Japan's killing of humpbacks," Greenpeace chief executive Steve Shallhorn said.
"The Japanese Government are breaching the international trade convention with their plans to import humpback whale meat into Japan.
"It is up to the new Australian Government to do all it can to protect Australia's $300 million whale watching industry.
"It can start by informing the CITES Secretariat of Japan's potential breach and follow up by sending a vessel to the Southern Ocean."
He said humpback whales were listed under Appendix 1 of CITES, which did not allow trade for commercial purposes in products from protected species.
"Yet after killing the humpback whales in the Southern Ocean, Japan will import, package and sell the meat for consumption," Mr Shallhorn said.
He said the CITES secretariat had a number of measures available to discourage Japan from taking humpbacks.
These include issuing a written caution to Japan, sending public notification through the secretariat to all parties of the issue, and notifying Japan that it is in non-compliance and request a compliance action plan.
It could also recommend a suspension of trade with Japan in CITES listed species.
- AAP
