Greenpeace activists Junichi Sato and Toru Suzuki, better known as the Tokyo Two, are on trial for intercepting a box of whale meat as part of an investigation into an embezzlement ring within Japan’s taxpayer-funded ‘research’ whaling programme.
The Japanese government subsidises the loss-making whaling programme to the tune of US$5 million a year, making the […]
Toru Suzuki is a Greenpeace anti-whaling activist from Japan. One of the Tokyo Two, he was arrested last year after exposing a whale meat embezzlement scandal that rocked the Japanese Government-funded whaling industry and made front page news.
Toru recently visited Australia, meeting with politicians, government officials and the public to provide an insight into the […]
The change of government in Japan in a landslide victory to the Democratic Party of Japan provides new hope of a shift on Japan’s whaling policies – especially if the Australian government plays the right cards. Although whaling is not an issue where the Democratic Party differentiates itself from the outgoing Liberal Party, a range […]
This post is just in from Junichi Sato. Junichi is one of the two Greenpeace activists known as the “Tokyo Two” that were arrested when they presented evidence of corruption in Japan’s whaling industry to Japanese authorities.
While Japan’s Criminal Justice System may look OK from a distance once you get close enough to smell and […]
Junichi Toru, on of the two Japanese activists known as the “Tokyo Two” arrested for exposing corruption in the Japanese whaling industry, is also at the International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting.
He’s “celebrating” one year since his arrest and shares his thoughts on the IWC meeting, his upcoming trial and the future of Japanese whaling.
I was […]
Everyone at the International Whaling Commission (or IWC) keeps assuring me that international meetings to decide important environmental issues aren’t normally like this.
The IWC is becoming something of a joke on the international stage. In recent years the IWC was a forum for fiery debate between pro conservation and pro whaling countries. The flashpoint nearly […]
I’m in Madeira, a Portuguese island in the Atlantic and the host of this year’s annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission. The IWC, as it’s known, is the peak international body for deciding upon all issues related to whales and whaling.
It’s also my first IWC meeting as a Greenpeace whales campaigner. To be honest, […]
We just got in some excellent photos of a blue whale (Balaenoptera musculus), taken off the coast of Sri Lanka by Hong Kong-based photographer and diver Paul Hilton. We have the privilege of working with great photographers and wanted to share these pics with you all.
Enjoy!
We’re very proud of our origami whales – our interactive website where you can pimp up your own origami whale to send off to Japan with a message asking their government to stop whaling. The website won a People’s Voice Award in this year’s international Webby Awards.
» Check out the website and add your origami […]
The big news in Iceland this week has been the election of a new Government which has previously said it will look at ending commercial whaling.
The world’s first openly gay leader, Prime Minister Johanna Sigurdardottir will lead a coalition government formed from Social Democratic Alliance and the Left Green Movement.
Just before he was forced to […]
We’ve had awesome news in the office! Our Origami Whales interactive website is finalist in the 2009 Webby Awards – the equivalent of the Oscars for the web!
The petition site was launched almost a year ago, asking the Japanese Prime Minister to cease whaling in the Southern Ocean. Users can pimp their own origami […]
Greenpeace is the only international environmental organisation on the ground fighting whaling in Japan.
Here is a fantastic video that reveals the investigative work by Greenpeace Japan into the scandal of whale meat embezzlement. Greenpeace activists Junichi Sato and Toru Suzuki were part of the team that exposed the scandal.
Meanwhile, Junichi and Toru, who were arrested […]
Not one, not two, but THREE good news stories on the whales front today!!!
1. An end to whaling in Iceland?
If elected at next month’s elections, Iceland’s Socialist/Green Coalition, who are leading in the polls ahead of a vote on 25 April, have said that they will end whaling in early 2010! The outgoing government sneakily […]
Last week the Japanese Finance Minister, Shoichi Nakagawa, was forced to announce his resignation after a terrible appearance at the G7 talks in Rome.
Although he claimed that his behaviour was due to an overdose of cold and flu medication, Nakagawa is known for enjoying a few too many. This latest display was the final straw […]
Japan’s annual Sapporo Snow Festival is a big event on the country’s winter calendar – attracting millions of visitors from around the country. This year, Greenpeace Japan contributed an ice sculpture highlighting the importance of conserving marine life such as whales.
Sachiyo Tanahashi, from our Japan office, tells us about the very warm reception they […]
Freshly inaugurated President Barack Obama has a new White House page detailing a huge range of his policies. So, what happens if we search for “whaling” in the Energy and Environment Policy section?
No results for ‘whaling’. But, the webpage helpfully asks: “Did you mean ‘dealing’?”.
It’s a pretty appropriate response given the wheeling and dealing […]
Whaling in Antarctic waters not only threatens whale populations – it also poses a huge risk to this particularly fragile, wild environment. Japanese whaling vessels have been known to refuel slap bang in the middle of these Antarctic waters: watch the footage.
Recently, Japanese whaling vessel, the Yushin Maru 2, was damaged in Antarctic waters and […]
Australians love their whales. They might be surprised to know that this is not just the season when Japan’s whaling fleet goes to the Southern Ocean, it is also the whale watching season around Japan.
Australia’s last whaling Captain, Paddy Hart, went to Tokyo a few weeks ago, to try to convince Japanese people that […]
By Charlotte Stemmer
I feel pretty sorry for whales. They have just spent winter on holiday in warm tropical waters where they sing their magical songs, attract a mate and then give birth to their young. Now they are blissfully swimming down towards the Antarctic on their long journey home, excited about the prospect of […]