Whaling is seen in the international community as a cruel act to animals. The reasons behind whaling varies; from its meat consumption to its use for medicine. Unfortunately, the international ban on commercial whaling, it has not abated the act by some countries such as Japan and Norway. In addition to
Iceland, Japan and Norway killed 2,000 whales each year (WDC, No Date). As the whaling continues, its effect becomes obvious in the population of the whales. It was generally believed that further whaling would put the population of whales under threat, a commercial ban was enacted by the International Whaling
Commission (IWC) in 1986 (WDC, No Date). Despite this ban, it still baffles the IWC to realize that over
50,000 whales have been killed
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Norwegian’s prowess at whaling beats the combined efforts of
Iceland and Japan at whaling and exports well over 400,000 pounds of products derived from whale meat.
Do I think the whaling ban constitutes a violation of these nations' sovereignty?
Without a careful consideration of the pros and cons, one might easily jump into the conclusion that the ban violates the sovereignty of nations. However, it is hard to monitor countries whether the whaling was done truly to uphold their cultural practices or for commercial purposes. For example, the argument by the
Japanese that their fishermen have been whaling for centuries and that is part of the culture which no ban will stop (Rupert Wingfield-Hayes, 2016), is nothing but a way to justify their continued commercial whaling. On the one side, it is easy to say that there are many whales in the ocean and that not all the whole world hunt them therefor whaling by Japan and a few other countries will not out the population of whales under threat. On the other hand, it can be argued as well that there are many types of fish species in the ocean and therefore Japan has alternative to fishing rather than
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The need for neutrality is to prevent the promotion of self-interest either for whaling or anti-whaling.
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How do you define a "cultural activity"?
For me, cultural activity is that which a group of people or country does and it is passed from one generation to another. For example, honor killing in a common cultural practice in some Asian countries.
This act has been tagged barbaric by many other countries. Just like there are two sides to a coin, outsiders of a cultural practice should endeavor to have a holistic view of such practice before passing judgements.
Does the economic impact of whaling on the small fishing villages weigh into your decision?
The economic impact of whaling in the small fishing village does not play a great role in my decision. The countries alleged to be involved in whaling such as Japan and Norway are economically advanced countries and should be able to provide for the small fishing village, particularly in the case of Japan. I believe Japan can still maintain this fishing village without recourse to whaling.
How should these claims be balanced against world opinion - which is generally very supportive of the protection of
Should killer whales be kept in captivity? Killer whales are mammals that travel in schools. These mammals eat large fish, seals, and even other whales. Killer whales can be dangerous, and are really big animals. When looking at all the evidence about killer whales in SeaWorld, laws and actions need to be enforced with this dangerous activity.
Due to the demand many packaging for the fish can find its was back to sea, or when fishermen are out at sea they can leave their garbage. Many nets from the boats and gears can also be found in the water, that fish can later see as food, eat it, and die; this ties back to extinction in fish. There is much pollution and decline stocks in fish because it is very hard to regulate the seas. To fulfill the growing demand for seafood, many companies are forced to fish beyond areas that are supposed to be non-fishing zones. This is because there are hardly any laws or restrictions telling them where they can and cannot fish. Sally Driscoll and Tom Warhol report in, ‘Overfishing’, that itt wasn’t until 1956 where we saw our first regulation, the United Nations organized the first UN Convention of the Law of the Sea or the NCLOS which helped promote rights of all countries by establishing boundaries off shore. Meaning that some seafood fished in certain areas of the ocean cannot be sold in certain countries, and in some areas it is illegal to fish unless you have a permit from that country. Economy also helps make it harder to regulate the seas, in ‘Overfishing’ it is explained that Preisdent Barack Obama brought up Antiquities Act of 1906, that let fishermen expand their fishing areas. The United Nations FAO estimates that 25 percent of all fish trapped in nets are labeled unusable or not licensed for fishing by the
McCarthy, Michael. "Should We Be Keeping Animals Such As Killer Whales in Captivity?." The Independent (London, England). 26 Feb. 2010: 50. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 04 Feb. 2014.
I believe that animals should be treated with respect, but so should people. I would perhaps have a different idea about this if the whales being hunted were nearing extinction, but the truth is, it is the whalers who are nearing extinction. Even though Norway claims that national sovereignty permits them to allow whaling, public opinion is working against them. Whaling in Norway is dropping every year. (3)
The Makah’s seemingly domestic issue of whaling has and is taking on a larger international problem. The United States plays a large part in policing the hunting of whales, one of the most recent examples being the U.S.’s ...
You’re sailing in a whale watching boat in the big blue open water of the Northern Pacific Ocean. You spot a lonely seal on an iceberg and then suddenly a fast wave approaches it. The seal slips off the iceberg and falls into the mouths of two generations of hungry Orcas. Killer Whales which are widely distributed in the world’s ocean, but the status of most populations of killer whales is unknown (Killer Whale (Orcinus orca)). But soon the killer whale will become rare and vanish if we don’t do something remarkably fast.
How would you feel if your mother was murdered directly in front of you and you were only a few weeks old and you did not know how to fend for yourself? That's what these poacher are doing of these whales. They look for mother with fairly new calves because it means they have more fat on them. The more fat the more oil they produce which makes for more money. In Greenland they kill at most ten whales a year. While in Japan they kill five hundred and thirty to seven hundred
I do not feel that a ban on whaling constitutes a violation of the sovereignty of nations that have a history of whaling. As sovereign nations, they have the choice to follow the recommendations set forth by non-government organizations such as the International Whaling Commission. Problems can arise when other members of the commission then press for sanctions against the nation choosing not to follow the mandates from the commission. These problems need to be addressed in a way that not only honors the cultural heritage of the nations that are not following the recommendation of the commission, but prevents every nation from claiming a cultural exemption in order to skirt the
How would you like to live in a bathtub your entire life? Never get to leave that tub, and the only purpose of your life is for the pure enjoyment and entertainment of others. You wouldn’t would you? So what makes humans think a twelve ton Orca, that in nature swims about an average of one hundred miles daily, would want to be kept in a pool its whole life? Keeping Orcas in captivity, strictly for show, when the pool is too small, and they are not kept in good physical or mental health. Some argue SeaWorld is not a problem that it is good enough for research, because SeaWorld gives them protection from the outside world where they wouldn’t survive as long, or that being kept in a pool simply doesn’t affect them physically or mentally. SeaWorld is inhumane to Orcas they do not take care of their physical or mental health, it causes the animals stress and anxiety, and causes them to be aggressive, leading to deathly situations.
...d the economic, ethical, and practical aspects of international regulation. Different views of ecology, culture, and legitimacy as they pertain to a valued resource and its exploitation for human purposes. While it is safe to say one must preserve the historical and cultural value of whaling nations and nations around the world, it can also be said of animals. While many nations continue to cling to their cultural ancestry background of whaling and the right for scientific research, it is proven that such human endeavors must be carefully and faithfully regulated. Commercial whaling has essentially seized to exist in the clear claims of such, but Japan and other nations are ever so slightly getting closer to that boundary. “We should remember in our dealings with animals that they are a sacred trust to us…[They] cannot speak for themselves” (Harriet Beecher Stowe).
Overfishing is a harmful practice, that will eventually lead to the collapse of aquatic ecosystems, if it’s not dealt with promptly. Overfishing emerges from the combination of our over consumptive society mixed with the great profits that come from hauling in a good catch. The consumers demand for fish in Japan seems to be at an increasingly high rate due to the enjoyment and cultural values that arise from sushi and other traditional dishes involving seafood. Approximately 23 percent of Japan’s protein intake comes from the ocean, and as a nation consumes 7.5 million tonnes of seafood annually. CITATION
One effect of whaling is the economic advancement that people have made from sold whale parts. One of the major reasons why people hunt whales is because different parts of the whale can be sold for
For almost 400 years, whales have been chased to near extinction. Vessels have travelled the globe to find and extract precious oil and gather whale meat to eat. This has resulted in over 10,000 whales being executed since the moratorium in 1986. A moratorium is a delay or suspension of an activity or a law and in this case a suspension of whaling. Also a ...
Social prejudice and a human propensity for ethnocentrism cause observers of a culture other than their own to judge such practices and beliefs as peculiar, yet ‘many of our own practices are peculiar when viewed through the lenses of other cultures’ (Karp, 1990, p74-75, cited in Schultz &...
...mplication would be significant in that it would give rise to judgment of morality outside and independent of culture. One example would be the active practice of anti-Semitism directed at the destruction of Jewish peoples. Could such a practice ever be construed as an opinion or even routine cultural custom? By any stretch it would be hard to imagine anything less than universal condemnation of killing for no other reason than genocide. This objection is strong, perhaps opening an avenue of attack toward Cultural Relativism on the basis of some type of universal morality. It is impossible to conceive of an arbiter to judge such a class of morality. Even though the example is strongly suggestive, that’s not the same as proving with certainty that there are sufficient grounds to say that it should be okay to consider any custom of another culture as inferior.