Summary Australia moves International Court of Justice against hunt in icy waters around Antarctica.
THE HAGUE (AP) - The battle over Japan s controversial whaling program is moving from the high seas to the United Nations highest court.
Australia opens its case Wednesday at the International Court of Justice, arguing that Japan s annual hunt in the icy waters around Antarctica is an illegal commercial activity outlawed since 1985 by an International Whaling Commission moratorium.
Australia s agent to the court, Bill Campbell, said Tuesday, "What Japan is doing is commercial whaling, pure and simple."
But Japan argues that the annual hunt is legal under article eight of the 1946 International Convention for Regulation of Whaling, which lets governments to grant permits authorizing their citizens "to kill, take and treat whales for purposes of scientific research."
The hearings are expected to last for eleven days, with New Zealand supporting Australia.
