Tony Blair and Bill Clinton, Condemned move
A Japanese whaling fleet has set sail for the northwest Pacific in defiance of strong objections by world leaders and environmentalists. The six ships are expected to catch about 220 whales, including some from two species that haven't been hunted for the past thirteen years. The country stopped commercial whaling in 1986 to comply with an international moratorium. It has since been hunting whales for what it says are scientific research purposes, but the meat is sold commercially.
Here, the Minister for Arts and Heritage, Sile de Valera, has expressed disappointment at the Japanese decision. She said that her representative at a meeting of the International Whaling Commission earlier this month had urged the Japanese to accept Ireland's compromise proposals, which would have confined whaling by the Japanese to their own waters. Foreign protests have been led by President Clinton and the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, and the World Wildlife Fund has called for trade sanctions against Japan.
