THE International Whaling Commission (IWC) has rejected a bid by Japan to push through a document aimed at eventually resuming commercial whaling, with anti-whaling nations labelling it "an insult". The measure, which would have required a three-quarters majority, was voted down by 29 votes to 23, failing even to secure a simple majority of the 66-member bloc. Senator Ian Campbell, who is also opposed to Japan's effort to extend its scientific whaling program, described the vote as a historic victory. "It's a really historic victory for whale conservation, this has been a historic day," he told ABC TV.
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