The ceremonial trip for Whale Hunting was met with a nice surprise for the fishermen as they were able to catch two minke whales
The expected ceremonial trip of the Japanese whalers on 1July brought in a surprise for them. The fishermen were able to catch two minke whales, on the very first day of the resuming of whale trade by Japan.
The Six month notice given by Japan to IWC on December 26 came to an end on June 30, 2019.
The resuming of the commercial whaling after 1988 has been welcomed by the traditionalist. The conservatives on the other hand hold a different opinion.
Early Monday morning a fleet of five boats left port Kushiro located on the northern side of Japan.
The fisherman brought back two minke whales which were seen as a sign of good luck.
A ceremony was held, to celebrate a good catch on the very first day. The workers poured sake, onto the whale to express thanks and celebrate the first catch. It was then the whales were loaded and sent to the factories for processing.
Japan had switched to research whaling 31years ago, after it had been banned by the International Whaling Commission. Yet as a member of the IWC, Japan continued to hunt whales for research purposes.
Japan finally unveiled its whale hunt quota, as 227 whales this year. The number is way less than what Japan hunted under the research program.
In recent years 637 whales have been hunted in the Antarctic and North Western Pacific by Japan under the research program as part of the IWC.
The declaration of the quota comes a day after the end of the G20 summit held in Osaka, Japan.
Also read: http://diplomacybeyond.com/canada-day-2019/
Image courtesy: Reuters
