A bad deal

Bill English is in Japan at the moment to talk about reviving the TPPA. Meanwhile, his government has confirmed the worst: that they want to revive the deal-as-signed, complete with US IP bullshit:

The Government has confirmed that countries not signed up to the Trans-Pacific Partnership, including the United States, will be able to reap the benefit of concessions New Zealand has made on pharmaceuticals.

Yet New Zealand will not benefit from better access to the US market in return, because president Donald Trump pulled it out of the pact.

Ironically, the concessions on the way drug agency Pharmac operates were made to make the 12-nation trade deal more palatable to the US.

So, we pay all of the costs, and get none of the benefits, of a deal that was pretty marginal to begin with. So why are we doing this? It makes no sense at all. This is a bad deal, and one we should be rejecting.

Spying for the whales

Japan is a country with whom we have generally positive relations. So naturally, the GCSB has been spying on them to help the US at the International Whaling Commission:

New Zealand spied on Japan to help the United States at an international whaling meeting in 2007, according to a classified National Security Agency document.

The Intercept website published the paper, received from US whistleblower Edward Snowden, as part of an article on Japan's secretive relationship with the National Security Agency.

The document, marked top secret, outlined a mission where GCSB spies collected information on Japan and passed it on to the NSA ahead of a key vote.

[...]

New Zealand spies were collecting "insightful" intelligence that "laid out the lobbying efforts of the Japanese and the response of countries whose votes were so coveted", the document said.

Japan probably wasn't the only target - GCSB's area of operations includes the South American and Pacific island states whose votes Japan was hoping to buy - most of whom are our friends. And while New Zealanders disapprove of whaling and want to support the IWC moratorium, I think many of us would also be deeply uncomfortable with the idea that we would spy on people and tap their phones to do that. Its invasive, underhanded, two-faced - the exact opposite of the values we want our foreign policy to express.

And that's the core problem: spies are corrosive of our values. Its one thing to spy in wartime, out of military necessity. Its quite another to do it in peace, on your friends, for self-advantage. If an actual person did that sort of thing, most people wouldn't want to know them. And now that we're known to do it as a country, many of our friends won't want to know us either.

Japan plans to defy international law on whaling

Last year Australia successfully took Japan to the International Court of Justice to get it to stop its "scientific" whaling program. But while they had originally announced they would obey the rulign and international law, Japan now intends to defy it:

Japan initially said it would abide by the ruling in the Hague. In April it submitted a revised whaling plan under which 333 minke whales would be killed each year between 2015 and 2027, about one-third the haul it previously targeted.

But experts at the IWC said the new program offered no scientific justification for the slaughter.

In a special declaration, however, the Japanese government recently told the UN that the ICJ’s jurisdiction “does not apply to ... any dispute arising out of, concerning, or relating to research on, or conservation, management or exploitation of, living resources of the sea”.

So, faced with an adverse court ruling, they've decided to withdraw from the court on that issue. Which sounds awfully like their past attitude to international forums reasserting itself.

As for the solution, the Humane Society has apparently brought contempt proceedings in the Australian courts in an effort to force the Australian government to enforce a previous ruling against Japanese whaling in Australian waters. But I think the Australian government is unlikely to act to enforce its own laws. Which means we'll need to rely on Sea Shepherd to do it for them.

Ending "scientific" whaling

Last night at a meeting in Slovenia, the International Whaling Commission closed the "scientific" whaling loophole, voting by a clear majority to enforce the International Court of Justice's ruling and require that such whaling actually be done for science. Future scientific whaling programs will have to be approved by the IWC's scientific committee to ensure that non-lethal methods are considered and that any killing of whales is done for valid scientific purposes rather than to fill Japanese freezers.

Its great news, but there's a problem: Japan has already declared that it will defy the ruling (and the ICJ):

But Japanese diplomats at the summit in Slovenia said that they would not be bound by the resolution because they took a different interpretation of the ICJ ruling, and would proceed with the new round of research whaling in the Southern Ocean that they had already declared.

“We are disappointed with their announcement,” Gerard Van Bohemen, the leader of the New Zealand delegation told the Guardian. “We thought it important that there was a strong statement agreed about the interpretation and application of the court’s decision but in the end it wasn’t possible to reach consensus on that.”

So, next year we're going to have a renegade nation murdering whales in the Southern Ocean in defiance of international law.

Shouldn't we do something about that?

New Fisk

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Victory on whaling

Last night, the International Court of Justice ruled that Japan's "scientific" whaling program was illegal:

Activists are claiming victory after the International Court of Justice ordered Japan to stop its Antarctic whaling programme, but warn the fight may not be over.

Judges at the highest United Nations court have ordered Japan to halt their annual hunt in the Antarctic, rejecting the country's long-held argument that the catch was for scientific purposes and not primarily for human consumption.

[...]

The court concluded, in a judgment released overnight, that Japan's JARPA II programme was not "for purposes of scientific research" as allowed under Article 8 of the 1946 International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling.

[Former IWC chair Geoffrey] Palmer said the ruling was the strongest seen so far.

But the court could not rewrite the treaty, and Japan was technically able to continue whaling if it created a new programme that met the court's tests.

The latter is important: the court has stopped the whaling program in its present form. But Japan could revive it by killing fewer whales, or by actually publishing the results rather than simply eating the meat. Though we can expect any new program to come under intense scrutiny to see whether it is consistent with the court's ruling.

Meanwhile, the National government is trying to claim some of the glory from this, but its worth remembering: National originally didn't want to get involved in the case (because they value sucking up to Japan above the environment), and only intervened in it in late 2012. Strong opposition? I think not.

Saved

Japan has had its worst whaling season ever, and its all thanks to Sea Shepherd:

The haul from Japan's whaling mission in the Southern Ocean was a "record low" this year, a government minister said on Friday, blaming "unforgivable sabotage" by activists.

The hunt netted just 103 Antarctic minke whales, less than half its tally last year, and no fin whales, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi said, adding it was the lowest total since "research whaling" began in 1987.

The fleet, which was again harassed by militant environmentalist group Sea Shepherd, is due to arrive back in Japan over the next few days, Hayashi told a press conference.

Say what you like about Sea Shepherd, but they are getting results. In the past three years they've reduced Japan's whale slaughter by around 80%, saving around 2,000 whales in the process. They've been so successful that the Japanese government has been reduced to stealing tsunami aid money to continue funding its whaling program. And hopefully they'll keep doing the job until there is no more whaling.

Why did it take so long?

After standing on the sidelines for two years, the New Zealand government has finally joined Australia's case against Japanese whaling at the International Court of Justice. Good. Kiwis love whales and hate whaling, and our government should represent that view on the world stage. And while its taken them a long time to get round to it, they are at last doing the right thing.

At the same time, we should be asking why it took so long. Why didn't the government join in immediately? What was Murray McCully doing for the past two years? Its difficult to see it as anything other than an example of National's knee-jerk anti-environmentalism and subservience to power. A different government would have acted more quickly, and been a better representative of New Zealand values.

No-one wants whale

The Japanese insistence on hunting whales for "science" has led to the joke that what they're really investigating is how many Japanese people like to eat whale. Well, now we know the answer: hardly any of them:

Japan's failing appetite for whale meat left three-quarters of meat from whales caught in the north-west Pacific last summer unsold, according to a report.

Junko Sakuma, a freelance journalist, said the body responsible for selling meat from Japan's controversial "scientific" whaling programme had failed to sell 908 tonnes of the 1,211-tonne catch, despite holding 13 public auctions since last October.

[...]

The Institute of Cetacean Research blamed low demand on the complicated auction procedure and reluctance among food suppliers to attract criticism from anti-whaling groups such as Sea Shepherd.

Which, if correct, is another feather in Sea Shepherd's cap.

Meanwhile, you really have to ask why the Japanese bother.

Saving the whales

Japan's whaling fleet is going home early for the second year in a row. And they're quite clear about who is responsible: Sea Shepherd:

Japan has ended its whaling season with less than a third of its annual target, said the country's Fisheries Agency.

The whaling ships headed home from the Antarctic Ocean this week with 266 minke whales and one fin whale, falling short of its quota of about 900.

The agency blamed "sabotage" by anti-whaling activists for the shortfall.

That "sabotage" - really vigorous, confrontational protest - has saved the lives of at least six hundred whales this year. In the process, they've made the Japanese whaling fleet that much more uneconomic, and hastened the day when the "scientific" whaling programme ends for good. I'd call that a success.

A shoddy hatchet job

Reading the story in Stuff today about how Sea Shepherd is promising to go "kamikaze", you'd be forgiven for believing they had gone completely over the edge and were planning suicide attacks against the Japanese whaling fleet this summer. The story talks about how the organisation is "going to launch 'dramatic' attacks" and implicitly quotes Sea Shepherd leader Paul Watson as saying his ships are "ready to attack the Japanese". At the end of it, I was left wondering "did they really say that? Did they really say "we are a terrorist organisation conspiring to commit murder, please arrest us'?" So, I did what you do in this day and age, and actually looked.

The sources for the article are a press release and the organisation's Facebook page. Neither makes any mention of "attacks". They do say (and the Stuff article repeats) that they will be protesting, and that the Japanese "will have to kill us to prevent us from intervening once again", and that they "are in for a very dramatic and adventurous three months beginning in December". There are people in the comments being dicks, of course - but no suggestion from the organisation or its staff that they are planning "attacks" or to kill people. Instead, the concern is that the Japanese, who have just spent A$30 million on upgrading the security of their whaling fleet, will kill them. But that's a risk they say they are willing to take (and lets all hope it doesn't happen).

Rather than an organisation threatening terrorism, from the source material you see an organisation willing to put its lives on the line for their cause. Stuff has significantly distorted that, presumably in order to get more hits and sell more eyeballs. Their "journalists" should be ashamed of this shoddy hatchet job.

Saved for another year

The Japanese whaling fleet in the Southern Ocean is reportedly going home early - and we can thank Sea Shepherd for it:

No immediate official confirmation was available from Japan. But the factory ship, Nisshin Maru, was today steaming towards Drake Passage, below South America, pursued by the Sea Shepherd group's vessel Bob Barker, having left its nominated whaling grounds 2000 nautical miles behind.

[...]

The whereabouts of the fleet's three harpoon ships is unknown, but they have been unable to kill whales without the Nisshin Maru to process the the mammals.

A smaller whaling fleet came under sustained Sea Shepherd pressure from the delayed outset of its season this year, sharply reducing its capacity to catch a quota of up to 935 minke whales and 50 fins.

The activists located the fleet as soon as it reached the Antarctic, kept two of the three Japanese harpoon ships engaged for weeks, fouled the propellers of one, delayed a fleet refuelling operation and then sent Nisshin Maru on the run.

Japan will have to report on how many whales they caught, and then we'll be able to see just how effective Sea Shepherd has been. But it looks like they've saved hundreds of whales from Japanese harpoons, and likely made the "scientific" whaling industry uneconomic in the process.

Standing up for New Zealand values

New Zealanders love whales. New Zealanders hate whaling. So you'd expect the New Zealand government to be joining the Australian government's case to prevent Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary before the International Court of Justice, right?

Wrong. Instead, we're just standing on the sidelines:

New Zealand won't join in Australian court action over Japanese whaling but will have input into the case.

The Government has decided not to file as a party to Australia's legal action in the International Court of Justice, the United Nations' highest court, against Japanese 'scientific whaling' in the Southern Ocean.

Wouldn't it be nice to have a government which stood up for New Zealand values for once, rather than ignoring them in the hope of selling more milk? A government which represented all of us, rather than just a few greedy farmers?

National is not such a government. We should vote them out and get a government which will properly represent us on the world stage.

Pete Bethune is coming home

Stuff reports that anti-whaling activist Pete Bethune has been given a suspended sentence on charges of trespassing and vandalism, and that he will be returning to New Zealand. That's good news. It looks like the Japanese whaling industry's attempts to politicise the justice system to victimise those who speak out against them has failed.

The Japanese will probably be hoping this will deter future protests. I doubt it. If anything, the brutality they displayed this year will have encouraged more people to oppose them, and support groups like Sea Shepherd in disrupting their organised murder of whales.

Saving the whales

Japan has released its catch report on its annual "scientific" whale hunt in the Southern Ocean - and revealed that they killed only half as many whales as they were planning to. The reason? Sea Shepherd:

Whalers said they were angry, and blamed what they described as "violent interference" from the anti-whaling Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.

Clashes at sea between Sea Shepherd and the whaling ships paralysed the hunt for 31 days.

No matter what you think of their methods, Sea Shepherd are certainly effective. This year, they saved almost 500 whales from Japanese freezers (I'd say "dinner plates", but no-one buys the stuff). No wonder the Japanese are pissed.

Peter Bethune

On Friday, anti-whaling activist Peter Bethune arrived in Japan, and was arrested for illegally boarding a Japanese whaling ship. Since then, there has been a storm of protest in New Zealand, with demands for the government to step in and ensure Bethune's release. In response, the government has said that they cannot intervene in Japan's legal processes. Mostly, this is making excuses - the prosecution is transparently political, an act of vengeance against a protestor who has successfully shamed Japan in the eyes of the world and exposed its aggressive and unlawful actions in the Southern Ocean (pro-whaling National is probably right behind that, and wishes they could do it here - their fans in the Kiwiblog Right certainly are). But formally, at least, they're right. But that doesn't mean they should wash their hands of the affair and hang Bethune out to dry.

According to the US State Department's 2009 annual human rights country report, Japan has significant problems around fair trials and detention conditions. Australian Senator Bob Brown alludes to this when he says that their courts "have nearly a 100 per cent conviction rate". According to the US State Department Report, they achieve this by coerced confessions, lengthy pre-trial detention during which defendants are interrogated without access to legal counsel, and stacked trial procedures which favour the prosecution. Once convicted, prisoners (particularly foreigners) are frequently subject to abuse and solitary confinement, while poor conditions, notably lack of heating in winter, results in preventable injuries and illnesses.

The New Zealand government should not abandon any of its citizens to this sort of system. It should make it clear to the Japanese authorities that it will be watching the trial like a hawk, to ensure that it is fair and abides by international standards. If Bethune is convicted, they should monitor his detention to ensure that it too meets international standards. And they should make it clear that any failure to provide a fair trial or any abuse in prison will result in diplomatic protest and complaints to UN human rights bodies.

The government won't want to do this. we should make them. Our government should look out for all its citizens, no matter where they are, and no matter what their political opinion. And if they fail in this, we should hold them accountable for it.

Australia does something about whaling

The Australian government has stepped up on whaling, telling Japan to stop its "scientific research" in the Southern Ocean or be taken to the International Court of Justice. Good. Meanwhile, I recall that last month, John Key got an easy headline by declaring that he had a secret plan to end the Vietnam War end Southern Ocean whaling. And since then, nothing. I guess the lesson is that Rudd acts, while Key just engages in cheap talk.

Insanity in the Antarctic

A Japanese whaling vessel has rammed a Sea Shepherd protest ship, cutting it in half and leaving it sinking (photos here). No-one has been injured, and the crew of the Ady Gil (the former Earthrace biofuel jetboat) have all been rescued - but people could easily have been killed, either in the collision or by the Southern Ocean in its aftermath. This is a dangerous escalation in the behaviour of the Japanese whaling fleet, and it creates a real risk of retaliation. And the consequences of any similar incident could very easily be dead people.

I blame the Japanese for this. They clearly have a policy of responding aggressively to protests in a manner which shows utter contempt for human life. And that insanity needs to stop. They are operating in one of the most dangerous environments in the world, where any mistake can be deadly. They shouldn't be adding to those risks by ramming people.

Progress

It looks like climate change isn't the only area where Japan’s change of government will make a real difference. The new government has appointed Keiko Chiba, a long-standing opponent of the death-penalty, as Justice Minister. While she is being circumspect, it is highly unlikely she will be signing any death warrants any time soon - meaning a de facto moratorium in Japan. Even better, she is now calling for a debate on abolition and replacing the death penalty with life imprisonment - a move which would leave the US isolated as the only industrialised democracy to retain the death penalty.

Japan isn't the only place where we're seeing progress. Serious moves towards abolition are now underway in Lebanon and Kenya. Hopefully both will be successful.

Climate change: Japan steps up

A couple of months ago, the Japanese government washed its hands of climate change, setting a pathetic 8% reduction target for 2020 - a mere 2% advance on its existing Kyoto obligations. It was a triumph of short-sighted, selfish capitalism over sanity, a selling out of the future for the temporary ideological comfort of dead old men. But then there was an election - and now everything has changed. Japan is now offering a 25% reduction by 2020, putting it up there with the European Union as a climate change leader. And by doing so, they've knocked another support out from under our own government's pathetic 10 - 20% (if the rest of the world cuts their emissions by 30 - 40%) target. National "justified" its target on the basis that it was "in line" with those of other nations (for a certain subset of "other nations": those doing the least). But with more countries stepping up to actually do something about climate change, our own inaction becomes harder and harder to justify.

Now, if only Japan would start talking about border carbon taxes. That might produce some real change here.