Japanese whaling produces 'no new science'

[NeverSayDie]

Japanese whaling produces 'no new science'

By Julian Drape, AAP Europe Correspondent, AAP Updated June 27, 2013, 8:06 pm

Japan's so-called scientific whaling program hasn't discovered anything more than minke whales eat large amounts of krill, the UN's top court has been told by Australia.

Lawyer Philippe Sands QC began day two of the case against Tokyo's whaling activity in the Southern Ocean with a scathing attack on the country's JARPA research program.

"What you have before you is not a scientific research program it is a heap of body parts taken from a large number of dead whales," Mr Sands told the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague.

The lawyer said under the program thousands of whales have been killed over the past 26 years yet Japan couldn't offer any evidence of discernible progress.

"The JARPA program has offered nothing more than the information that Antarctic minke whales eat a great deal of krill," Mr Sands said on Thursday.

"That has long been known.

"To the best of my recollection I knew that in 1972 when my biology teacher told me.

"The program has offered nothing to the understanding of the Antarctic ecosystem."

The court heard that while body parts of whales were being collected no-one knew the aim of Japan's research program and therefore it was impossible to assess its results.

"Japan's objectives are simply there to allow whales to be killed not to establish a genuine program of science," Mr Sands said, adding the program was really all about politics and commerce.

He said Japan's view could be summarised simply: "If we say it's science, it is science."

Australia will present two expert witnesses on Thursday - US mathematics professor Marc Mangel and Australian Antarctic scientist Nick Gales.

Mr Sands said they would show that a genuine scientific research program needed to have defined and achievable objectives, use appropriate methods, be properly peer reviewed and avoid adverse events on the stocks being studied.

JARPA didn't do those things, Mr Sands said.

He noted Japan's own expert, Lars Walloe, was connected to Norway's commercial whaling program and his court paper didn't include a single footnote reference.

Australia argues alternatives to killing whales are available including satellite tagging, tracking and biopsy sampling.

It says Tokyo shouldn't be allowed to rely on Article 8 of the 1946 whaling convention which allows harpooning "for purposes of scientific research".

Japan will present its opening arguments on Tuesday.