Passage 2
Environmental activists in South Korea are condemning a government plan to hunt endangered whales for scientific research. They believe the plan is part of an effort to re-start commercial whaling activities. Such ac-tivities are banned in many countries. South Korea announced the proposal in July at a meeting of the International Whaling Commission in Panama. The head of the South Korean delegation said the plan was needed to answer questions about minke whale populations. He said the hunt would take place near the South Korean coast. But he did not say how many of the animals would be caught.
The International Whaling Commission has yet to malre a decision on the South Korean plan. The organi-zation banned commercial whaling in 1986 because of concerns about the survival of whale species. But now, some South Korean fishermen say they are facing a threat from minke whales. They say these animals are eat-ing what would have been their catch.
The plan was immediately condemned by anti-whaling nations. Wildlife activists also criticized the pro-posal. Han Jeong-hee works in Seoul for the environmental group Greenpeace. "It′s really regretful to hear that Korean government is, like, considering conducting scientific whaling. Scientific whaling is just, like,thinly-disguised commercial whaling. And, you know, we are of course against all commercial whaling. Japan′s the only country which is doing scientific whaling at the moment and Korea is just trying to follow that. "
Apart from the plan in South Korea, an aquarium (水族馆) in the American state of Georgia also wants to import eighteen beluga whales from Russia. The United States currently has 31 beluga whales. They are liv-ing in six aquariums and marine parks. Four of them are at the Georgia Aquarium in Atlanta.
The Georgia Aquarium has asked the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) for permission to import the beluga whales. If it was approved, aquarium off
A.Should whales be hunted or watched?
B.Should commercial whaling be banned?
C.Are whales safer in research institutions?
D.Are whales to blame for fishermen's loss?