Mr. Yasuo Fukuda Prime Minister of Japan We New Zealand based comedians and comedy fans have signed this petition to express our disapproval of the on-going whaling operation in the name of scientific research. We are deeply concerned about the Japanese insistence to continue whaling despite protests all over the world including other Asian nations. We would like to encourage the Japanese government to stop whaling in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary immediately as we believe: 1. That it is possible to conduct scientific research required for conservation without killing whales. 2. That the majority of Japanese citizens do not actively support commercial whaling. 3. That whaling within the IWC endorsed Antarctic Whale Sanctuary will cause unnecessary conflict between Japan and the rest of the world. 4. That \"respect and compassion for nature\" in haiku poetry and \"spirit of harmony\" in zen are far more worthy traditions to uphold than whaling. Yours sincerely, New Zealand comedians and comedy enthusiasts against whaling