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Japan under fire for humpback hunt
Japan's whaling fleet is hunting a whale
Japan came under a storm of criticism Monday for going ahead with its largest whale hunt yet.
Defying warnings from its Western allies that it would inflame an emotional row on whaling, Japan on Sunday sent its fleet to the Antarctic Ocean. The hunt will include famed humpback whales for the first time.
A ship of Greenpeace environmentalists tried -- so far in vain -- to track down the six-vessel whaling fleet as the United States, Australia, Britain and New Zealand all spoke out against the catch.
Japan, where whale meat is an important part of people’s food, plans to kill 950 whales on the five-month mission using a loophole in a 1986 global moratorium that allows "lethal research" with scientific purpose on the giant mammals.
Australia's opposition Labor Party, which is leading in polls ahead of national elections Saturday, said it would send out the navy to track the Japanese whalers and take video footage if it takes power.
Prime Minister John Howard said while "I totally disagree" with Japanese whaling, he opposed bringing in the military.
The US acknowledged Japan's right to conduct the hunt, but urged it to "refrain" from doing so.
"While recognising Japan's legal right under the whaling convention to conduct this hunt, we note that non-lethal research techniques are available to provide nearly all relevant data on whale populations," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said.
The environmental group Greenpeace's Esperanza ship was trying to find the fleet but said that the whalers had turned off identification equipment.
"If they're so confident they were doing the right thing, they shouldn't have anything to hide, but obviously they do," Greenpeace activist Dave Walsh said.
Humpback whales, protected under a 1966 worldwide moratorium by International Whaling Commission after years of overhunting, are renowned for their complex songs and acrobatic displays.
本周一消息，日本因启动迄今规模最大的捕鲸行动而遭到各方强烈谴责。
此前，日本的西方盟友向其发出警告，称其此次捕鲸行动将会引起国际社会的公愤。但日本一意孤行，已于上周日派捕鲸船队前往南极海。而且日本此次的捕鲸计划首次将珍稀物种座头鲸纳入捕杀名单。
“绿色和平”环保组织已派船追踪由六艘船组成的日本捕鲸船队，但截至目前，还没有发现他们的踪迹。美国、澳大利亚、英国和新西兰均对日本的捕鲸行动表示了抗议。
日本此次捕鲸行动将为期五个月，计划捕杀950头鲸。据悉，1986年出台的《国际捕鲸禁令》未明文禁止“以科研为目的”的捕鲸活动（译者注：该禁令禁止以商业为目的的捕鲸活动），日本正是钻了这个空子。但据了解，鲸肉一直是日本人餐桌上的美味。
在上周六的大选民调中领先的澳大利亚在野党工党表示，将派海军追踪日本的捕鲸船队，并将拍摄其捕鲸全过程。
澳大利亚总理约翰•霍华德说，他“坚决反对”日本的捕鲸活动，但不赞成动用军队。
美国承认日本有捕鲸的权利，但并不主张其这样做。
美国国务院发言人西恩•马克考麦克说：“首先得承认，日本在遵守国际捕鲸禁令的前提下，开展捕鲸活动是合法的，但据我们了解，通过非致命性的研究手段就可以得到几乎所有有关鲸类的相关数据。”
“绿色和平”环保组织的“埃斯波兰萨号”一直在寻找日本的捕鲸船队，但据了解，日本的捕鲸船队已关闭其识别装置。
“绿色和平”组织的环保主义人士戴维•沃尔什说：“如果他们相信自己做得对，就不必隐藏什么，但现在看来，他们显然是在躲藏。”
座头鲸以会“唱动听的歌曲”和表演杂技而著称。多年来，座头鲸被人类过度捕猎，1966年，国际捕鲸委员会出台捕杀禁令以保护这一物种。
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