- 14 Mar 2002
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Reported by ABCNews.com, July 4, 2002:
Japan Minister Blames Whales for Starving Millions
Japan's farm minister, defending his country's controversial scientific whaling program, suggested on Thursday the giant ocean mammals were taking food from the mouths of millions of starving people worldwide.
"I wonder whether you know that whales consume more than three to five times the maritime resources (that humans do), or in terms of fish, 300 million to 450 million tons of fish," Agriculture Minister Tsutomu Takebe told a news conference.
"I also have to point out that on the earth there are 800 million human beings who are undernourished."
Takebe later qualified his remark, saying he was merely pointing out the necessity of exploiting natural resources on a sustainable basis and not arguing that whales were actually to blame for global hunger.
It was not the first time he has drawn fire -- or stirred bewilderment -- by citing a threat to world fisheries resources to argue in favor of whaling.
At the International Whaling Commission's annual meeting in May, he drew parallels with damage to life and limb caused by an rise in the number of African elephants trampling on people.
"People say the hunting of elephants is for ivory, but that is not true," domestic media quoted him as saying. "For those concerned, it's a matter of life and death."
Japan abandoned commercial whaling in 1986 in line with a global moratorium, but began what it calls scientific research whaling the following year.
It lobbied for a resumption of commercial whaling at the latest IWC gathering, but its quest was thwarted at a meeting distinguished by days of bitter battles.
Copyright © Reuters & ABCNews
Sorry, but that sounds a bit ridiculous...
Japan Minister Blames Whales for Starving Millions
Japan's farm minister, defending his country's controversial scientific whaling program, suggested on Thursday the giant ocean mammals were taking food from the mouths of millions of starving people worldwide.
"I wonder whether you know that whales consume more than three to five times the maritime resources (that humans do), or in terms of fish, 300 million to 450 million tons of fish," Agriculture Minister Tsutomu Takebe told a news conference.
"I also have to point out that on the earth there are 800 million human beings who are undernourished."
Takebe later qualified his remark, saying he was merely pointing out the necessity of exploiting natural resources on a sustainable basis and not arguing that whales were actually to blame for global hunger.
It was not the first time he has drawn fire -- or stirred bewilderment -- by citing a threat to world fisheries resources to argue in favor of whaling.
At the International Whaling Commission's annual meeting in May, he drew parallels with damage to life and limb caused by an rise in the number of African elephants trampling on people.
"People say the hunting of elephants is for ivory, but that is not true," domestic media quoted him as saying. "For those concerned, it's a matter of life and death."
Japan abandoned commercial whaling in 1986 in line with a global moratorium, but began what it calls scientific research whaling the following year.
It lobbied for a resumption of commercial whaling at the latest IWC gathering, but its quest was thwarted at a meeting distinguished by days of bitter battles.
Copyright © Reuters & ABCNews
Sorry, but that sounds a bit ridiculous...