KITAKYUSHU (Kyodo) Four whaling ships of the government-affiliated Institute of Cetacean Research departed Wednesday from Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture, and Onomichi, Hiroshima Prefecture, planning to catch 260 whales in the Northwestern Pacific by the end of August.
The ships include the Nisshin Maru and the Yushin Maru, both of whose activities were disrupted by the antiwhaling group Sea Shepherd in the Antarctic Ocean between November and April.
According to the institute, whaling ships have not previously faced any protests in the Northwestern Pacific.
"(But) you can't tell what antiwhaling groups would do. We will be more careful than ever," an institute official said.
"My husband was aboard a (whaling) ship that faced obstruction efforts in the Antarctic Ocean. I'm worried about his safety," said a crew member's 38-year-old wife, who saw off one of the ships at Shimonoseki.
Journalists push 'Cove'
Kyodo NewsJournalists and pundits called on movie theater operators Wednesday to show the Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove," despite reported threats made against them to cancel screenings.
Around 60 people, mainly journalists and filmmakers, said in a statement they distributed at a symposium in Tokyo that such films "should be openly discussed" and failure to show them "would deprive people of a chance for such discussions."
The event took place after three theaters canceled screenings of the film, which shows the annual dolphin hunt in Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, following protests by those who claim it is anti-Japanese.
