Whales - Tonga

November 2007

For the first time in thirty years, the Japanese will begin hunting Humpback whales again this month. But it's thousands of miles away in Tonga that the ripple effects of this will be keenly felt.

Tonga is one of the few places in the world where you can swim with humpback whales. It's estimated that every whale contributes $1 million to the local economy. But now that Japan has decided to resume hunting, locals are worried 'their whales' will be the ones killed. "We do not want the Japanese to come and take our whales". But there are other threats to the whale swimming industry. Some doctors want to resume the killing of humpbacks for local consumption as an alternative to fatty, imported food.

Produced by ABC Australia
Distributed by Journeyman Pictures

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• journeyman
• pictures
• tonga
• whales
• killing
• humpbacks
• food
• consumption
• tourism
• news
• documentary
• current affairs
• journeyman pictures

[soana14]

sth your sooo stupid!Kill the whales wtf and eat it??Im tongan and i believe that there are heaps and plenty

of other seafood in the sea that we can as tongans can survive.GOSH people are so ignorant!

SAVE THE WHALES.The tongan tourist industry might grow and if the government wasnt so CORRUPT we might have alot of jobs to provide to these tongans!.PREDICTION: The japanese government will probably buy off the tongan government to kill these whales so we have to do something about this government

[sthcrox]

Tongans will continue to kill whales and eat. They love it and it's good. I have and i love it.

Go the Tongans!

[ToNGanStuNNa650]

naw i dont think Tonga will let them siapani's hunt whales in our soil; when I was in Tonga i never had no whale. I did eat horse though xD but forreal though we got the right to hunt and eat whales since it's in Tonga but just us though nobody else

[bubblerings]

I'm sure a lot of people would like to take large tissue samples of Japan's governmental officials... just to see what they are made of.

There should be the same quota of up to 3500 specimens, taken annually... of course, only for research purposes!

[bubblerings]

I'm sure a lot of people want to take tissue samples of the Japanese governmental officials... but, of course with a quota of only 3500 per year!... for research.

[boruone77]

across the world today, patriots and citizens in the Middle East and in other places are rallying to the bugle call of freedom.now is the time for our citizens in our beautiful paradise of Tonga to answer the call as well. Let's get into the streets and demand the removal of the dog King and his Baron bootlickers. we have nothing to lose except our chains, we have a country to win back! lets not leave this historic opportunity go to waste, let's fight for democracy, and win our freedom back.

[161riki]

please don't kill whales

[empressoceaneye]

Thank you for raising awareness about Whales.Malo 'aupito.

[TheKrazySystem]

if a tongan saw a whale, they will say. PRAKEFAST ANYONE! LOL

[islandgirlWAAT]

malo mua atele mo liahona . lol . i miss tonga SOOO much

[monkey23773]

A shooooot the bloody JAPANESE boat !

That so BULLSHIT !! acientific purposes , stupid people SAVE THE WHALES !