TOKYO, Japan — The United Nations has ruled that the Japanese Government breached international human rights law by detaining two Greenpeace activists who uncovered major corruption in the Japanese whaling programme.
CDNN
Please read that whole article. It kind of says it all. Two japanase environmental activists were arrested and tried because they uncovered a smuggling of whale meat, theoretically illegal. Apparently not. They intercepted a “cardboard” box, which contained stuff it was not supposed to contain: whale meat. The reaction of “justice” was just as expected. In Japan, apparently, they are the criminals, charged with theft and trespass. They are facing trial this monday, where they could be sentenced to up to ten years of prison. Note.
Japanese whaling is carried out under a provision of the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling of 1946, which allows for the animals to be killed for scientific research and the leftover meat to be “processed” as that country sees fit.
CDNN
They slaughter the whales for scientific research. Economy is a science, so they could observe how well it sells. Also, gastronomy could be considered a science.
An investigation was initiated by the Tokyo District Prosecutor but was suddenly dropped on the same day that the Greenpeace office in Tokyo and the homes of four staff members were searched by some 40 police officers, in full glare of the media, who had been tipped off. Junichi and Toru were arrested and held for 26 days. During this period, they were questioned daily for up to ten hours, strapped to a chair, without access to counsel – common practices in Japan, which have drawn repeated criticism from the UN Human Rights Committee. Eventually, Junichi and Toru were charged with theft of the “cardboard” and trespass. They were released subject to strict bail restrictions and face up to ten years in prison.
Greenpeace International
And then a japanese man is teaching us about human rights, and he has the same crooked views.
Public support for Greenpeace has fallen in Japan after the arrests and the Tokyo branch has been told its status as a non-profit organisation is under review.
CDNN
And i’m starting to lose it. I really, really feel the urge to call japanese “little yellow whale-munching assholes”. Had i not known many of them who also condemn whaling, i would.
Yesterday in listening class we listened to a presentation about the food chain. The teacher accidentally said “because japanese love whale meat”, then corrected “some japanese”. Freudian. After that, our teacher just told us that the whales are on the top of the chain, so they have to hunted, or they cause the entire chain below them to go extinct. I literally laughed in her face.
I’m checking the Greenpeace website on whaling if they will have any protests here in Tokyo. If there will be, i’m going. Until then, watch the South Park episode on whaling.
