The Aussie Factor

Many people around the world have tried to tell Japan, "You don't own these whales - they are wild and free, and should be left alone." Above all, Australia and her citizens hold an important position in the fight to save whales from these Japanese killing fleets. The Australians actually watch the whales swim by their coastlines as the gentle giants travel to and from the Antarctic Sanctuary. The whales that Australians and tourists watch playfully breaching and celebrating life just off shore are the same ones that the Japanese hunt down and cruelly slaughter.

In May of each year, the northern whale migration begins. Humpback (at least 1200 in number) and southern right whales make their way from the food-rich Southern Ocean to mating and breeding grounds in the warm sub-tropical northern waters.

The 5000km northern migration follows routes around New Zealand and up the coast of Australia - in the east to the Great Barrier Reef, and in the west to areas around and north of Shark Bay and Ningaloo Reef in Western Australia.

The whales then return south in November to the colder seas to grow and mature. It is here, in the so-called Southern Ocean Sanctuary, that the Japanese send factory whaling ships with their hunting/chasing vessels. The whales are no match for these technologically-advanced murderers.

In Australia, whale watching has become a $273 million industry annually. The Japanese whaling industry is threatening to kill Australia's whale-friendly business by slaughtering these beloved and intelligent mammals.

Please take a moment to write to Australia's top government officials and ask them to do everything in their power to stop Japan's brutal whale-killing.

http://www.seashepherd.org/whales/australia-action.html