Whale Rider actress joins Save the Whales campaign

May 8, 2009, 1:56 GMT

Wellington - New Zealand actress Keisha Castle-Hughes, who starred in the hit 2002 movie Whale Rider, spoke out Friday against a proposal to let Japan resume commercial whaling in its coastal waters.

She joined the World Society for Protection of Animals (WSPA) in calling on the New Zealand government to reject the proposal, which will be discussed at a meeting of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) on June 22 in Portugal.

Castle-Hughes, 19, said the proposal would effectively lift the IWC's moratorium on commercial whaling, 'opening the floodgates for this cruel industry to grow.'

She said that many governments believed the measure could act as leverage to control Japan's so-called 'scientific' whaling programme, which is permitted under IWC rules.

'Unfortunately, this is not the case,' Castle-Hughes said.

'In fact, it could not guarantee a reduction in the number of whales killed by Japan, Norway or Iceland. WSPA has scientifically proven evidence that there is no humane way to kill a whale, with some whales taking an hour or even longer to die.'

She expressed pride that New Zealand was one of the first countries to speak out against commercial whaling, but the government had not yet publicly come out against the new proposal, 'which would give the green light to this outdated and unspeakably cruel practice.'

Castle-Hughes was 11 and had no acting experience when she filmed Whale Rider. She became the youngest female ever nominated for a best-actress Oscar for her performance.