Japan's whaling industry in crisis: Greenpeace
activists survey the slogan they painted on the side of the Oriental Bluebird in the Southern Ocean in 2006.
Photo: Greenpeace
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The Japanese whaling industry's ability to catch whales in the Southern Ocean this summer will be compromised after the delisting of its vessel Oriental Bluebird, Greenpeace says.
The environment group said the vessel Oriental Bluebird was delisted earlier this year after accusations its whaling crew had secretly sent home a large amount of prime whale cuts.
Japan kills whales using a loophole in a 1986 whaling moratorium that allows "lethal research" on the marine mammals.
Greenpeace whales campaigner Reece Turner said it believed Japan's whaling fleet would head for the Southern Ocean as early as this week.
"If they are unable to get a new boat, and it looks unlikely in the short period of time, they will only be able to get about half the quota," Mr Turner said today.
"Already we have potentially halved the number of whales the Japanese fleet are going to be able to kill," he said.
Last year Japan originally planned to kill 950 whales, but returned to port after taking only 551.
Greenpeace is not sending a ship to the Southern Ocean this year to confront the Japanese.
In a statement, Mr Turner also called on Australia to build pressure on Japan to stop the persecution of two activists who have been held for 145 days since exposing corruption in the whaling industry.
Greenpeace have said the pair, Junichi Sato and Toru Suzuki, face up to 10 years' jail in Japan for intercepting whale meat stolen by crew.
"There is strong evidence that Japan has violated international law in its treatment of these peaceful activists," Mr Turner said.
A spokesman for Japan's whalers could not be reached for comment.
AAP
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