Analysis of the Historical Trends, Cultural Significance, and Nationalist Implications of Fishing and Whaling Industries in Japan

By Kristýna Šimonová

The country of Japan is inextricably tied to its marine treasures. The country's coastline stretches over almost 30,000 km, and no Japanese territory is further than 120 km from the sea. The waters surrounding the archipelago are among the world's most productive and varied fishing regions. Fish are a big staple of Japanese cuisine today - proven by the fact that Japan boasts the biggest fish market in the world and historically - as it has been established that saltwater fish and shellfish were the foundation of the diet of the archipelago's earliest inhabitants.This is reflected in the image of Japan for outsiders as foreigners cannot dissociate the image of sushi from this island nation, and rising numbers of tourists flock to the country to taste it for themselves. 

Despite the important symbolism, the recent news headlines paint the nation's fisheries only in a bad light. The release of nuclear waste water from Fukushima, the seemingly cruel practices of catching marine wildlife and the global rise of overexploited fish stocks are all examples of this. This paper will explore the intricacies of the contemporary issues of the fishing and whaling industry. It will reveal that even though both sectors are in decline, their symbolic power is enormously important for the national Japanese pride.

The remodelling of the Japanese fishing industry

The numbers of Japanese catch volumes are declining, contrary to the global trend where a slow but steady rise is recorded. This is a phenomenon that has been around for a while, as numbers have been in a state of decline since the late 1980s. Opposed to the worldwide stereotype of Japanese people mainly eating fish, they have been turning away from the consumption of marine creatures. Due to the high prices, change of lifestyle and complicated cooking methods, other meat is preferred. This negative trend is not exclusive to the consumer side. 

Japan is facing a crisis in fishery employment. Many fishermen are of a retirement age and no one to replace them. Historically, the craft was passed down from father to son, but younger generations are not interested in manual work and search for work in big cities. 

Despite the grim future of the fishery industry, the Japanese government is determined to keep it afloat. In 2019, subsidies were radically increased by 2 billion dollars, and legislation was remodelled. For instance, the Fisheries act of Japan has been in place since 1949 and was only changed three years ago. The main aim was to revive the industry by encouraging private companies to enter the typically closed-off sector. The industry has been historically associated with exclusive access. During the Meiji era, fishermen received permission to fish by paying rent to the government. However, this resulted in illegal fishing and depletion of species as the ruling power did not have enough surveillance. The first official Fisheries Act was enacted in 1902. It took many decades of discussion and compromise to reach a formalised law, as the specificity of Japanese fishing could not be managed by a modified European law. This resulted in a unique Japanese law that was compared to other laws from the Meiji era, not modelled on a previously created Western practice. Each fishing village was organised under a fishing union. This was changed during the 1930s, as all fishermen were required to be registered under the military government. In 1949, participation became voluntary. However, the most competitive fisheries were only available to members of formalised cooperatives. In modern times, this resulted in lack of healthy competition and a preference for typical businesses rather than new companies. Coupled with the fact that the old Fisheries Act was created in times of vastly different technology and conditions, a reform was heavily awaited. Due to the state of low numbers of species, total allowable catch (TAC) was introduced for most species (before, it only applied to eight) and individual quotas (IQ) for all vessels were introduced. All in all, the legislation from 2019 increased the subsidies to encourage more private companies to enter, created more suitable conditions for new technology, and introduced IQ and stricter TAC.

Overall, in the fisheries industry, Japan seems to be following the trends of the rest of the world as it deals with issues of climate change and depleting fishing stocks. This cannot be said for the practice of whaling which forms a critical part of the fishing industry. 

The incomprehensible whaling industry 

The image of Japanese people as heartless and killing whales for stubborn traditions has been imprinted in the minds of many Westerners due to the portrayal in media and heavy campaigning by non-governmental organisations. As Western nations condemn any hunting of whales, the reality of the frequent practice in Japan seems beyond comprehension for many.

Eating whale meat has been a normal practice in Japan for centuries. However, it had mostly been confined to coastal communities. It only became a widespread practice after the war, when there was a lack of nourishment, especially protein. It was actually the idea of General Douglas MacArthur, the effective ruler of Japan during the American occupation, to start hunting whales on a greater scale.

Japan became a member of the International Whaling Commission in 1951 as regulation of whaling practices was judged at that time to be necessary to maintain a sufficient number of whales for hunting. In the 1960s, the whaling and fishing industries were holders of substantial power in the country. In the beginning of the 1960s the Japanese whale meat consumption was at its peak, being eaten more than any other meat. In the middle of the decade however it became more evident how scarce were resources becoming and a ban on some whale species was introduced. By the 1970s environmental concern over hunting whale practices was manifested by international organisations and overall negative sentiment over whaling was shared in the West. In 1975 the price of chicken meat was for the first time cheaper than whale meat. However, the amount of whale meat consumed remained constant. In 1986, a moratorium on commercial whaling for five years was adopted, mainly promoted by the United States. The Japanese negotiators had to agree to this as the American officials threatened to terminate the Japanese fishing quota in the Exclusive Economic Zone of the US. The fish caught in those waters were more valuable than the exclusive whaling mandate.

After this, Japanese commercial whaling had to stop, but the government was unwilling to terminate the practice altogether, so they continued hunting allegedly for science. It is important to note that Japan was not the only country restarting its hunting of whales; Norway and Iceland did the same. The moratorium was extended, and in the following decades, the restrictions became more severe but Japan never relented in its ambitions to continue catching whales. The true reason why the Japanese government pushes for whaling to remain a traditional practice is a topic of many debates, as the official reasoning for scientific aims was mostly labelled as illegitimate. This is firstly due to the number of killed whales, which some specialists determine as too high or even completely unnecessary, as scientific observations can be made without the killing of the animal. Secondly, no grand research and progress about whale species has been made to warrant the practice's perpetuation. 

One of the reasons for continuing whale hunting is the close connection between the Japanese Fisheries Association (JFA) and the ruling party of the Liberal Democrats (LDP). This bond has had historical roots as the first president of JFA was Japanese Imperial Prince Akihito Komatsunomiya. The JFA has supported the LDP financially. Some sources attribute this link to the amakudari system when retired government bureaucrats switch to high-profile positions in private or public institutions. Speculation surrounding the proximity of ties between business individuals and politicians is prominent among political analysts. However, it is very difficult to measure the degree of influence.  

An interesting relationship between the political sphere and the public sentiment about whaling can be observed. There have been instances of promoting whale meat consumption and encouraging the patriotic feeling of the long history of whaling. This feeling is often considered synthetic, as only coastal communities and older generations have had a closer experience with whales.

Conclusion

Overall, we observed three approaches explaining the continuation of the whaling industry. Firstly, the labelling as scientific research for foreign audiences and official bodies. Secondly, the possible influence of associates with whaling interests on politicians. And lastly, the maintenance of the traditional practice to preserve the heritage of Japanese people. In 2019, Japan quit the IWC and resumed commercial whaling. The period of time that whaling was labelled as scientific is, however, crucial in understanding the situation today. It fuelled the negative public sentiment over banning the practice. And even though there is a declining trend in the consumption of whale meat, labour shortage, and rising subsidies coming from the taxpayers' pockets, the Japanese government is not terminating the practice any time soon. The competition over the whaling practice has, in a great aspect, become symbolic today, and neither the Japanese government nor the activist side are willing to come together to reach a solution. 

We have seen that both fishing and whaling practices have had a long history intricately tied with the idea of Japan and Japanese people. Even though both are reliant on large subsidies today, they serve multiple purposes. Despite an ageing population, the sectors employ a high number of people, and they are a staple part of the Japanese diet but, most importantly, form a large part of national pride. The fisheries and whaling industries form a distinct portion of the Japanese nationalistic tendencies labelled as nihojin-ron, substantially promoting the uniqueness of the people. The future of Japanese fisheries will be marked by the global crisis of depleting fish stocks as the industry tries to adapt. The whaling industry, on the other hand, is unlikely to be assimilated into the practices of the rest of the world. 

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