The International Court of Justice based in The Hague ruled on Monday that Japanese whale hunters did not pursue scientific goals, the Japanese television station NHK said. The court resolved that Japan's whale hunt failed to meet the scientific research standards set by the 1946 International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling (ICRW). The court said Japan would not be issued with whale hunt permits in the future. Australia filed a claim against Japan in 2010 seeking to stop whale hunting by the Japanese in Antarctica.

"Greenpeace has been fighting the cruel hunting in Antarctica for years and insisting that science is a mere cover for business. In 2008 Japan arrested two Greenpeace activists for the action they staged at the whaling fleet vessel Nisshin Maru," the environmentalists said. "The meat of whales killed 'for scientific purposes' is sold in Japanese stores and restaurants. This country has been asserting for years that whale hunt is an ancient tradition.

Now thousands of tonnes of whale meat are stored due to low demand," Greenpeace Russia said. A Greenpeace poll showed that 80% of the Japanese were opposed to whale hunting.

source: The voice of Russia