On December 5th, we sent copies of “The Cove” DVD to the heads of the International, Japanese and USA Olympics Committees, with a message about dolphins and whales.
The 2020 Olympics will be held in Tokyo, and we believe Japan would benefit from ending whaling and the killing of dolphins as the world turns a spotlight on that country during the Olympic games.
Here’s our letter:
Mr. Thomas Bach, President
International Olympics Committee
Olympic Studies Centre , Switzerland
Dear President Bach:
We wanted to provide you with information about our concerns with the government of Japan’s continuing support for illegal whaling and the slaughter of hundreds of dolphins annually in the most cruel ways imaginable.
However, we also wanted to make clear that we understand that the XX Olympics Committee cannot and will not take a position on such an issue. Furthermore, it is not our intent to “boycott” Japan or the Olympics in Japan in 2020, nor do we wish to disrupt the Olympics in Japan in any way.
We do, however, wish to convey our concerns and encourage you to pass along these concerns to the government of Japan.
It is unfortunate the government of Japan continues to permit and encourage the killing of these remarkable and intelligent whales and dolphins for frivolous purposes. The World Court in the Hague has ruled that Japan’s killing of whales in Antarctica violates the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling of 1946. The International Whaling Commission has passed several resolutions urging Japan to stop killing whales in keeping with the moratorium on commercial whaling. The Cove (we are enclosing a copy for your review) won the Academy Award for Best Documentary of 1992 and has made the slaughter of dolphins by Japan an international scandal.
The government of Japan’s unwillingness to end whaling and dolphin hunting is a serious breach of their responsibilities to the welfare and recovery of whales and dolphins and to the commons of our oceans. But, as noted above, the killing violates a number of international norms and treaties, deliberately undermining international cooperation and the rule of law. This behavior is truly unacceptable to the vast majority of the people around the world.
We have sent a letter to Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a copy of which is enclosed. We urge the Japanese government to take steps now to end the killing of whales and dolphins before the 2020 Olympics puts a public spotlight on their actions that threaten the world’s whales and dolphins.
Thank you for your consideration of our concerns for whales and dolphins.
Sincerely,
David Phillips, Executive Director
Mark J. Palmer, Associate Director
Cc: Mr. Tsunekazu Takeda, President, Japanese Olympics Committee
Mr. Lawrence F. Probst III, President, United States Olympics Committee
If you would like to contact these three Olympic Committees with your own concerns about Japan’s whaling and dolphin killing (Please be polite!):
INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
Château de Vidy 1007 Lausanne Switzerland
Tel. (+41 21) 621 61 11
Fax (+41 21) 621 62 16
President Thomas Bach thomas.bach@olympic.org
JAPANESE OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
KISHI MEMORIAL HALL
1-1-1 JINNAN
SHIBUYA-KU
TOKYO, Japan 150-8050
Tel. +81 3 3481 2286
Fax +81 3 3481 0977
Email: JPN-NOC@JOC.OR.JP
UNITED STATES OLYMPIC COMMITTEE
1 OLYMPIC PLAZA
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, USA 80909
Tel. +1 719 632 5551
Fax +1 719 866 4763
Email: INTERNATIONAL@USOC.ORG
Read Our Letter to Japan Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.
Read about our campaign on Huffington Post.
Photo credit Team GB.