Tom Grover

“Whale Wars” is a provocative reality TV show on Animal Planet that features a group of environmentalists attempting to disrupt Japanese whaling in the Antarctic. The group is the Sea Shepherds lead by rogue environmentalist Paul Watson.  Basically, these guys use a series of large and small ships and a helicopter to interfere with the annual Japanese whale hunt.  The Sea Shepherds do things like throw butyric acid on the whaling ships in an attempt to disable them.  The Sea Shepherds have even collided with whaling ships.

The Sea Shepherds justify their aggression, which undoubtedly places human lives in jeopardy, because they believe the whales must be protected.  They also argue that the Japanese fleet is in violation of international law.

There are a few things, however, you should know- that the TV series and the Sea Shepherds are not likely to tell you.

First, the whales the Japanese fleet are hunting, Minke whales, aren’t endangered.  In fact, the Minke whale isn’t even threatened.  It’s conservation status is of “least concern.” In the Antarctic alone, there are at least 670,000 Minke whales.  Each year the Japanese whaling fleet sets a quota of 1,000 whales from Antarctic waters.  This represents 0.15% of the population. Japanese whaling is not a threat to the antarctic Minke whale population.

Second, the Japanese are not breaking any laws by hunting Minke whales.  While the International Whaling Commission does not condone Japanese hunts, they do not prohibit them either. The Japanese are allowed to take 1,000 Minke whales per year in the name of science.  Now, let’s be honest.  The Japanese are hunting under a research quota, but it is clear that the real purpose of these hunts is to obtain whale meat for consumers. The meat from these whales must be sold and consumed per IWC regulations.

Third, the show will not explain to you, the viewer, the context of whaling in Japanese culture. Whaling is not simply an agricultural industry to the Japanese.  It is central to cultural identity.   The Japanese have been hunting whales for nearly a millenia.   The Japanese feel that Western opposition to the whale hunts are an example of “cultural imperialism” and “racism.” The  Japanese correctly point out that other nations, such as Norway, participate in whaling but do not experience the same intense criticism. In fact, the Japanese make a strong argument that the centrality of whaling in their culture provides a strong incentive to ensure the long term sustainability of the Minke whale population.

Japanese deputy whaling commissioner Joji Morishita explained this to the BBC:

“We are not saying that we want to utilise endangered or depleted species.

“People say they want to preserve whales for future generations and we agree. We want to preserve whales as a resource, so we have a mutual goal.”

Depleting the whale populations to unsustainable levels would destroy nearly a millenia of tradition.  The Japanese are not about to do that.

When the Sea Shepards attack the Japanese whaling fleet in the antarctic, they are not just disrupting commerce, they are insulting Japanese culture.  But the TV show isn’t going to tell you that.  Instead, you’ll be lead to believe that the Japanese are callous and indifferent to the supposedly critical position of the Minke whale in the antarctic.