Australia says it will take Japan to International Court of Justice to stop whaling

Australia to take Japan to court over whaling

CANBERRA, Australia — Australia has announced it will take Japan to the International Court of Justice in a bid to prevent it whaling in the Antarctic Ocean.

Environment Minister Peter Garrett and Attorney-General Robert McClelland say it underlines the government’s “commitment to bring to an end Japan’s program of so-called scientific whaling” in the southern seas.

They announced the decision to take Australia’s important trading partner to the court in The Hague in a joint statement on Friday.

Japan gets around an international ban on commercial whaling by arguing that it harpoons hundreds of whales each year for scientific research.