Is Japanese whaling illegal?
There is a global ban on commercial whaling that was established by the International Whaling Commission (IWC). According to this ban, whales cannot be killed unless it is for scientific research. Japanese whalers use this loophole. They hunt under the guise of scientific research and then sell whale meat for human consumption (ie, commercial purposes). This is not a real research program but commercial whaling in disguise, and as a result, it should be considered illegal. The IWC has judged that Japan’s scientific whaling does not address critically important research needs. It has expressed deep concern that the provisions of its charter providing for research whaling enable countries to hunt whales for commercial profit.
