Yes I personally agree with the Norwegian and Japanese positions Firstly because, this is a non-endangered species of whales in these regions, thus has no environmental effects Secondly, the governments of these two countries have seek for an exemption on cultural grounds from an International Whaling ban, at a U.N. Conference on trade in endangered species that whaling constituted an integral part of their cultural heritage; Also the fact that, many International agreements, especially trade agreements, contain exceptions for cultural activities is unfair, in my opinion. I think living in a globalized world we should also consider or respect the cultural aspects or values of communities with respect to their positive beliefs and personalities. I also think the U.S. Department of Commerce shouldn’t use its powers to impose its values about wildlife upon other nations such as Norway and Japan. …show more content…
Yes I think the whaling ban constitutes a violation of these nations’ sovereignty. I belief the culture of a nation is part of its sovereignty in that, it helps identify and guide the people of that nation. Moreover, as the fishermen of these nations hunt whales and the food source considered as their tradition and culture, the northern coastal villages depended on hunting and fishing for their livelihoods. Also for a community of people from Norway for instance, who have been carrying this practice for centuries now, that has become more of a culture to them and the act of hunting whales already being part of their tradition. So putting a whaling ban on such a community where the whales are non-endangered species in this area, will for me be considered a violation of the nations’ sovereignty. Tampering with a nation’s sovereignty is like imposing foreign rules to a people that may cause a negative reaction like war. Especially when such an act is also a major source of income to that community or