Politics behind Japan's commercial whaling

Editor's Note: Japan resumed commercial whaling on July 1, the very next day its membership to the International Whaling Committee expired and six months after its withdrawal from the organization. Why does Japan ignore the international community's opposition to commercial whaling? And what will be the impact of its move on the marine environment? Two experts share their views on the issue with China Daily's Liu Jianna. Excerpts follow:

Whaling will damage the marine ecology

Despite dating back to 875, Japan's whaling industry has very few takers today. Still, several factors have contributed to Japan's seemingly baffling obsession with whaling.