Written by Zoe Blain
Week 5: Whaling Laws
I recall a summer afternoon five or six years ago; throwing foam ‘noodles’ at my father’s friends’ children. They swam and shrieked and kicked through the deep, commanding me to “act more Japanese.” Then the ‘whales’ morphed into activists and tackled me into the water. We ate sausages for dinner, and the boys showed me letters they had received from Greenpeace, thanking them for their support.
My best friend has a phobia of whales. Once I asked her what she thought of whaling…
“You don’t want to know.” Then we hiked to the lighthouse from ‘Round the Twist’ and scaled its spiral stairwell. A guide directed our eyes to the ocean. “If you’re lucky, you might spot a whale!” My friend shuddered. “It’s their tales. I hate their tales, and how mould grows on their backs.”
When I think about whaling, these images flood through first. Followed by a backwash of bloody carcasses dragged across my television screen. SBS world news. I sit on the couch, eating dinner, watching black dingeys wave fists at rusted metal monsters.
I am not vegetarian, so I don’t believe I can fairly condemn whaling. The government retorts, but they don’t hold a strong moral position either. It smells like politics. The Australian border control don’t tolerate any unauthorized vessels in our waters, regardless of who is on them and what their intentions are.
In a sense, the Japanese have a stronger argument than we do.“‘You eat cows and pigs, so why can’t we eat whales?” One whale feeds a lot more people than one cow, so really, isn’t this more humane? Whaling takes less lives than slaughter houses. Plus, the Japanese do claim that whale meat has been a part of their diet since 800 AD… Is our sensitivity towards whaling a disguised attempt to westernize Asia? How would we react if Hindu activists begun protesting at slaughterhouses to protect ‘holy’ cows?
What this debate really comes down to is the disparity between whales and other animals consumed by humans. In Australia, as in most western countries, cows are bred in copious numbers for food. Most whale species are endangered, with some, such as the Bluewhale declining into three digits. Minke whales, which are highly sought by the Japanese also make the list.
I don’t believe that whaling is an issue of ethics. Hundreds of thousands of animals are slaughtered each day for food, and the loss of one life shouldn’t be seen as less tragic than another. In fact, last week as a non-vegetarian I made a pledge. I proclaimed that I would eat human meat if it was served up, because the animal world shouldn’t be hierarchised in terms of ‘worthiness.’ Whaling therefore comes down to respecting and preserving the diversity of the earth’s ecosystem. Ensuring a rich, balanced variety for years to come.
My friend and I as Humpack whales
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