- Wildlife campaigners have made a last-ditch attempt to
halt a controversial whale hunt.
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- Demonstrators descended on London's Trafalgar Square
to protest against a six week operation to kill 38 minke whales in Iceland.
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- As whalers left harbour, animal rights campaigners branded
the reasons behind the programme as spurious and absurd.
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- The government of Iceland announced last week that it
was resuming whale hunting as part of a scientific programme, effectively
bypassing international treaties banning commercial killing.
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- They claimed to be investigating the depleting fish stock,
but wildlife groups hit back, saying that whales and fish have co-existed
for millions of years.
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- Tony Banks, Labour MP for West Ham, saying: This is commercial
whaling, they are perverting the name of science to slaughter animals.
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- "Much of the meat will probably end up on plates
in Tokyo restaurants, their argument is absurd and it is never too late
to send a message to the Government. The ships are leaving harbour as we
speak but we have to register a protest."
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- Holding up a life size model of a baby minke whale, International
Funds for Animal Welfare campaigners handed out petitions to whip up support.
Robbie Marsland, head of campaigns, said: "It takes one and a half
hours to kill a whale - there is no humane way to do it.
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- "The reason for declining fish populations has nothing
to do with whales. We know that there are splits over this issue within
the Icelandic government so we are hoping that this international pressure
will force the whalers to return from the operation."
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- Greenpeace has sent its ship Rainbow Warrior to Iceland
to demonstrate against the hunting. Its first voyage in 1978, was also
in Iceland, in a bid to confront commercial whalers.
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- Copyright © 2003 Ananova Ltd
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- http://www.ananova.com/news/story/sm_809461.html
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