At the meeting the two remaining whaling countries, Japan and Norway, will bitterly oppose the creation of a South Pacific Whale Sanctuary (SPWS) as proposed by Australia and New Zealand. Although the sanctuary has the support of all the countries in the region, the move may be blocked by the votes cast by the eastern Caribbean countries, all of which receive aid packages from Japan and all of which vote with Japan on every occasion.
Japan has also recently announced that it intends to expand its 'scientific' whaling in the North Pacific to include two new species - sperm and Bryde's whales. Both sperm and Bryde's whales were heavily exploited in the past and their current status remains uncertain. In an attempt to try and reduce the public opposition to this latest escalation in their whaling programme, (which is bound to be strongly opposed in the IWC), Japan has hired the public relations firm, Shandwick International, to launch a massive campaign which claims it is a crucial part of their culture.
