Why Japan will not give up whaling

Despite enduring so much foreign criticism for its pro-whaling stance, why does Japan continue to push for a resumption of commercial whaling? By exploring this question we can become more cognisant of the wider influences on Japanese state behaviour from societal groups in domestic politics and accepted cultural traditions. We can then understand why foreign pressure has difficulty in resonating within Japan. This paper analyses Japanese diplomacy at the two recent Meetings of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (1997 and 2000) and the International Whaling Commission (2000 and 2001), and also the apparent paradoxes of Japan’s having a popular whale-watching industry and the Japanese public’s increasing engagement in whale rescues. From these negotiations, it is clear that Japan’s pro-whaling stance underscores the principles that it holds as important, such as respect for self-determination, respect for the legally binding rules of international treaties, and respect for science-based management as the basis for regulating the international use of resources when cultural values and preferences differ so greatly. It also shows that the current misinformation, polarisation, posturing, dogmatism and hostility dominating the whaling debate is not helpful to anyone. Furthermore, the implicit love for living whales which is associated with a whale-watching industry and rescuing stranded whales is not necessarily incompatible with wishing to harvest whales. These apparent inconsistencies can coexist because they link to Buddhist notions of respect for whales.