(JP)Wildlife as Canon sees it?

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http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/canon-shooting-whales-240108 Does

Canon support shooting whales? 24 January 2008

 

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If you want to shoot a whale - use a CANON. …But only if Canon tells the

whalers to lose the harpoons

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Image<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/photosvideos/photos/Shoot-whales-w\

ith-a-CANON>

 

Tokyo, Japan — Having saved over 100 whales by pursuing the Japanese whaling

fleet's factory ship for over 5,000 miles,keeping it and the rest of the

fleet out of action for 14 days, the Greenpeace ship Esperanza has run low

on fuel and must return to port. Yet, as our ship heads to Hobart,

Australia, the campaign to save the whales is far from over. We're focused

on shooting whales... with cameras. But we were surprised to learn that

Canon, the world's number one digital camera producer, isn't willing to

condemn using harpoons -- despite their high-profile advertising and

sponsorship programmes dedicated to wildlife and endangered species.

 

We wrote to Canon headquarters in Japan asking their CEO to speak out

against Japan's whaling programme. But Canon declined to take a stand

against the killing of thousands of whales in the Southern Ocean Whale

Sanctuary. Is this really wildlife as Canon sees it?

 

Around the world, Canon cameras shoot whales on whale-watching expeditions

but in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, many whales are shot instead with

exploding harpoons. Thousands of whales, including endangered fin whales,

have been killed here under the guise of " scientific research " ever since

the global moratorium on whaling came into force in 1986. Whale meat from

the hunt is sold to a tiny minority of Japanese people who eat whale meat --

the rest is turned into dog food or added to the stockpile of around 4,000

tonnes of unsold meat. Whales can be studied without killing

them<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/oceans/whaling/great-whal\

e-trail>:

the cloak of " science " merely allows a few Japanese bureaucrats to maintain

an unprofitable whale meat industry at the expense of Japanese taxpayers.

Yet this scandal continues because there is not enough domestic pressure in

Japan to end it.

 

<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/canon-shooting-whales-240108/use-a\

-canon-to-shoot-whales>

Take

Action: Ask the CEO of Canon Japan to defend whales

<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/canon-shooting-whales-240108/use-a\

-canon-to-shoot-whales>

 

 

Mister Fujio Mitarai, the CEO of Canon Japan, is a businessman, a taxpayer,

and the leader of a company that endorses wildlife conservation. He is also

the head of the Nippon Keidanren (Japanese Business Federation). This is the

highest position to which a CEO can aspire in the Japanese business world

and it means having the ear of the Prime Minister. His voice could help put

an end to a decades-old scientific hoax and subsidy scandal, and add weight

to Canon's claims to environmental concern by actually saving the whales

that advertise Canon cameras. So we asked him to speak out against whaling

within Japanese society by signing the following statement to clarify

Canon's position:

 

" Canon is committed to building a better world for future generations, and

does not support the hunting of endangered or threatened species with

anything other than a camera. Canon believes the lethal whaling research

programme in the Southern Ocean should be ended, and replaced with a

non-lethal research programme. "

 

Unfortunately, Canon has so far refused our request, saying " We fully

recognise the importance of protecting endangered wildlife. We have

continuously put our advertisements featuring " endangered species " in

National Geographic since 1981. "

 

However, their letter concluded, " scientific opinion about research whaling

varies... we will not sign the statement you have sent us. "

 

 

 

But the whales need a powerful domestic ally in Japan -- so now we're asking

our supporters (and especially Canon customers) to urge him to reconsider,

and express his disapproval of lethal research whaling. If Japan wants to do

research, it can do so with cameras and other non-lethal means - just as we

have been doing through our Great Whale Trail

project<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/campaigns/oceans/whaling/great-w\

hale-trail>,

which uses satellite tracking, photo identification and skin biopsies.

 

To preserve our independence, we do not accept corporate donations.

Greenpeace is not sponsored by Canon, never has been, and never will be. We

do use Canon cameras – there are nine of them aboard the Greenpeace ship

Esperanza at the moment, one of them in the hands of Leandra, our on-board

scientist doing non-lethal research. All were professional or personal

purchases. We are not calling for a boycott on Canon products -- they are

not directly involved in whaling -- we are challenging Canon to match word

to deed, and to take action for the whales, in the same way we seek to

inspire individuals to take action for a better world.

 

Why Canon?

Canon has built a great deal of its brand's reputation for environmental

concern through their sponsorship of environmental causes, including the

conservation of endangered species. Canon runs a popular series of ads in

National Geographic Magazine entitled " Wildlife as Canon sees it " and

supports wildlife advocacy groups around the world with donations,

equipment, and expertise.

 

We believe that when a corporation draws income and brand value from

association with environmental causes, they have a responsibility to speak

out on those issues. We trust that most of the good folks at Canon, as one

of the world's premier " wildlife brands, " share our concern that wildlife in

general, and whales in particular, should not die unnecessarily for

" science. "

 

Canon says on its

website<http://www.canon.com/environment/eco2007e/p67.html>that it

wants to " hand over a beautiful Earth for future generations " .

 

 

 

A corporation which paints itself as a defender of wildlife and one

concerned about endangered species and the natural world ought to do more

than express those values in images, advertisements, and sponsorships: they

need to use their immense power to speak out and act for a better world.

 

Every day, supporters ask: Why no boycott?

Greenpeace does not endorse a general boycott of Japanese products. We know

that the majority of Japanese people do not actually support whaling, and we

are anti-whaling, not anti-Japanese. We believe such a boycott would be

difficult to focus, harm the wrong people, and be ineffective in stopping

whaling.

<http://www.greenpeace.org/raw/image_orig/international/photosvideos/photos/Cano\

nAd-NationalG.jpg>

 

Canon advertisement in National Geographic

 

Yet we also know there are deep sentiments among our supporters to

participate in such a boycott - they write to us literally every day during

the whaling season either announcing they have launched their own boycott or

wanting to know why Greenpeace doesn't do the same. Even in the absence of

an organised boycott, whaling harms Japan's image with potential customers.

 

Here's an example.

 

A few months ago, we heard from a woman who wrote to Toyota in her home

country, New Zealand, to say she was not going to replace her Prius with a

new one, because Toyota, as a Japanese car company, had an implicit

association with Japan's whaling programme. Toyota New Zealand wrote back

to her to say " Please be assured that Toyota New Zealand and Toyota Motor

Corporation Japan do not condone whaling for commercial, scientific or

research purposes. " While Toyota Japan later distanced themselves from this

position, it demonstrates how much of a liability whaling can be for

Japanese corporations operating in the West.

 

When we looked at what other Japanese corporations ought to be enlisted to

speak out domestically against whaling, Canon leapt out as an obvious

choice.

 

" My family and I love canon cameras- they are all we've ever owned, and we

will love them even more if you prove to the world that Canon is committed

to building a better world for future generations, and does not support the

hunting of endangered or threatened species with anything other than a

camera.

 

The earth would be incredibly less beautiful without whales. "

 

Read more letters that have already been sent to

Canon<http://weblog.greenpeace.org/makingwaves/archives/2008/01/canon_can_save_w\

hales.html>

 

 

Whaling: more trouble than it's worth

Some Japanese officials are already speaking out about whaling being a

diplomatic liability. The Japanese decision, since put on hold, to add

humpback whales to the list of species targeted in the whale hunt led to

formal complaints from several of Japan's allies. The Los Angeles Times

quoted one official, who asked to remain anonymous, as saying " [Whaling] is

doing no good for Japanese diplomacy. Many people are saying Japan is not

balancing its interests, with a vocal minority dictating a course that risks

some of our most cherished relationships. "

 

As head of the Japanese Business Federation, Mister Mitarai has a

responsibility not just for Canon's own welfare, but also for the collective

well-being of Japanese businesses at home and abroad -- where whaling is a

liability for Japanese brands and their profitability.

 

If you think Mister Mitarai should actively defend whales in the Southern

Ocean Whale Sanctuary you can write to him by clicking on the link below.

 

Take action

 

- Tell the CEO of Canon that he shouldn't support the needless killing

of threatend whales for

science.<http://www.greenpeace.org/international/news/canon-shooting-whales-2401\

08/use-a-canon-to-shoot-whales>

 

Donate

 

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corporations. We rely entirely on support from millions of people

like you.<http://www.greenpeace.org/donate>