South Korea had planned y to conduct ‘scientific’ whale hunts similar to those carried out by Japan in the Antarctic every winter. Photograph: Momatiuk – Eastcott/Corbis

Bravo, activists of all stripes, but in this case especially the emailing type.  And thank you, Korea, for finally rejecting false justification for whale-killing and doing the right thing. Click the image above for the whole story in the Guardian (whose consistent coverage to these issues deserves credit, too):

Japan, which uses the loophole to kill hundreds of whales every year, is expected to send its whaling fleet to the southern ocean in the next few weeks.

South Korea initially said an increase in whale stocks in its coastal waters had prompted the decision to resume whaling. The fisheries ministry said rising whales numbers posed a threat to squid and fish stocks.

The ministry reportedly began to reconsider after criticism from anti-whaling nations and an online petition that attracted more than 1,000,000 protest emails in three weeks.

Et tu, Japan?