“The Sea Shepherd extremism is becoming more violent…Their actions are nothing but felonious behavior,” said the Institute for Cetacean Research in a written statement that was heavy on the rhetoric.
“Contrary to its claims to be a marine wildlife conservation group in reality they are dedicated to fund-rising [sic] and to spread violence under pretext of protecting whales.”
The statement went on to take a rather ironic jab at the Sea Shepherds for abandoning prop-fouling ropes and “spoiling the Antarctic marine environment.”
Both the Sea Shepherds and the Japanese whaling fleet have stepped up their efforts this year. The Sea Shepherds, by sea; the Japanese whalers, by air.
The Sea Shepherds added two new vessels, the Ady Gil–which may have sailed for the last time–and the newly-added Bob Barker, named after the TV game show host and long-time patron of conservation’s $5 million donation to the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. To counter the additions to the Sea Shepherd floatilla, the Japanese began conducting surveillance flights from Tasmanian airports to track the location of the protest ships. A move that has already triggered condemnation from the Tasmanian Greens.
“The Japanese whalers have now escalated this conflict very violently,” Sea Shepherd Capt. Watson in a statement after the incident.
“If they think that our remaining two ships will retreat from the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in the face of their extremism, they will be mistaken. We now have a real whale war on our hands now and we have no intention of retreating.”
Photo credits: 1. and 3. JoAnne McArthur/Sea Shepherd; all other images: Institute of Cetacean Research Other sources used in this story: Sydney Morning Herald; Herald Sun; Ecorazzi. Tim Hurst is the editor of ecopolitology, follow him on twitter.
terrorists and extremists are the fishermen,and nutless homos like you,they skin the animal while its still alive what more extreme terror could you possibly inflict on the poor brute.notoriously feeble,thats your pecker on a Friday night asshole your wife told me when she was 33$@% my %$^#$@#…you will be the first people whining when the ocean is a stagnant cesspool,where did all the fish go?,why didn’t somebody do something?wank wank whine.
These pussies had it coming. Hopefully watson’s had a heart attack by now or something.
No McAteer which side of the debate that you are on one thing is clear. The premeditated actions that Paul Watson and his crews take when they illegally board vessels, cause damage to them and threaten their crews are illegal acts. They justify it by stating that halving s illegal, the Japaneese leet is using a loophole but it is I’ll egalitarian. Attacking foreign flagged hips the way Watson does is not legal under any legal standing.
If ths occurred off the last of Afica and someone attempted o illegal lard or detain a vessel it s called piracy and is delt with in at least some cases with a 50 caliber Barrett rifle.
Watson needs to be prosecuted for his crimes and if he or his boats attack (they cal it attacks) a boat the vessel has the right o defend itself, under Jaimie law that includes sinking the aggressor.
Sorry for typos, rocking ship. Yes I’m watching Watson.
I’m not saying that I am pro-whaling, but I wonder what people would think if a Japanese group started interfering with American oil tankers, commercial fisheries, etc in international waters because they deemed it ‘inhumane’ or ‘damaging to the ecosystem’. The level of arrogance is almost comical. If they want to disrupt another nation’s practices then they better be prepared to face whatever consequences come with it and not bitch about it. I commend them for acting on their beliefs, but at the same time I have no sympathy for them when they get crashed into and shot at. I’d do the same damn thing if somebody was interfering with my business like that.
well, it’s not just about beliefs. these whalers are violating international law.
Are you lot actually in favour of killing whales? Reading the comments here it seems that you are!
Personally, the only shame I find in all of this is that the governments and navies of the world can’t deal with the whalers. It’s not the job of civilians to do a military job. What a pity that the ‘pirates’ have more guts than politicians and the armed forces. What the Japanese are doing is illegal. To call their activities ‘research’ is simply ridiculous. The only reason they are allowed to get away with their crimes is because the world is frightened of the economic consequences of opposing them.
To call the whalers ‘fishermen’ is also ridiculous. Whales are mammals, not fish, and I’ve never seen anyone fish with an explosive harpoon. It’s more usual to use either a net or a line and hook.
now if we could just sink thie eco-terrorist while on board and send them to davy jones locker that would be fantastic.
luc K y
i may be passionate and
a lousy speller at the same time.
tough breaks guys. big ships sometimes hurt little boats that tease and get in the way, and hinder their work, and attempt to cause damage to large ships with ropes in screws.
lucy no one became kreel in those same screws.
if whale meat is as bad as you claim, why not put pressure on the Jgovernment to stop poisoning their children. last i thought about it i consider CHILDREN more important than whales. but i guess that is just where YOUR values are.
which i respect.
ha ! NOT !
The Japanese kill 1,000 whales a year and 24,000 dolphins brutally. Dolphin and whale meat are poisonous with high levels of mercury. Japanese government serves whale and dolphin meat to public schools because the demand for it falls each year. The Japanese whalers kill protected whales in a whale sanctuary. It takes 45 minutes for the whalers to kill a single whale.
I only wish it would have been the Sea Shepards main boat that was sunk with the crew on board. They are pirates and terrorists. They need to be arrested and sent to GITMO. The Japanese are just fishing making a living, and the tactics used by the Sea Shepard are cowardly and dangerous. If the Japanese would hire me I would go out on their ships with them and take a gun. If the pirates attacked or got in out way of fishing I would open fire on them. The Sea Sheppards crew are losers and criminals that need to be stopped. Anyone giving them money and supporting their cause is supporting Terrorism and Piracy. These people should be prosecuted as well.
Russell Sapp
in WHAT WAY are the tactic employed by the sea shepherd dangerous? Butyric acid to make things stinky (oh the HORROR) and the occasional tangle rope.
The whalers are breaking an international LAW that BANS commercial whaling, and even if it weren't against the law, the whalers have a quota of 935 Minke whales per SEASON. These whales are endangered and they want to kill 935 a season?!
There's no doubt that the Japanese are trying to make a living, but they are doing something against the law. Both groups are doing something against the law, but the sea shepherds aren't getting paid for it, they are putting themselves in harms way to protect precious animals in a strictly non-violent way and are met with violence at every turn from the whaling fleet.
Paul even offered to assist the Japanese in the search for one of their crew who had fallen overboard, and the Japanese refused! The Sea Shepherds even turned around to return to port while the whalers searched for their crew member, but then one of the Yushin Maru started following them.. INSTEAD OF CONTINUING TO LOOK FOR THEIR FALLEN CREW MEMBER, this harpoon boat was following the Steve Irwin!
Anyone supporting the japanese whalers and their continued assault against whales need to be stopped. This is an extreme act of eco-terrorism and has been banned by an international treaty.. they aren't using the whales for science.. if they were.. THEY'D ONLY NEED ONE FUCKING WHALE, NOT 935! WAKE UP!
go suck some Japanese dick you miserable muthr fukr,you hunters are the terrorists,and like it or not this shit is gonna stop ,even if we have to start cutting your fukn throats,you worthless homos go through life concerned only with yourselves and your worthless family,you don’t have the stones to take a shot at anybodyterrorism and piracy<what load of drama are you a cop?you sound like one,you my friend are the loser,so shut your hole and go back to plucking on your computer from moms basement.,prosecute this sapp…..they are trying to preserve these creatures who are being wiped out while you stuff your fat ass with all you can eat shrimp.people like you should kill themselves,you are the type of person that is cruel to cats and shoots birds I know the type ,jefferey dahmer comes to mind.
Are you kidding me? You idiots dive in front of a ship, and expect it to stop? Do me a favor. Try the same thing with your bus on train tracks. The crew of the Sea Shepherd should be renamed “The Gang That Couldn’t Steer Straight”. Pirates you are, and a pirates death you deserve, but even pirates aren’t as stupid as this crew.
Are you kidding me the Adi Gil obviously cut across the bow of the whaler. Just because your an extreme activist doesn’t make you right about everything. Wake up this Sea Shepard group is going beyond reg. protest and causing danger to life and property by there actions if you would just read the statement above by one of your own….Jeff Hansen, Australian director of Sea Shepherd, said the Ady Gil had come to a stop in front of the Shonan Maru 2 vessel…..wow even Jeff says that they “stopped in front of the Maru 2”. Seems to me its there fault no matter how one sided you are….
you are stupid. they came to a stop because they were nearly out of gas and didnt want to use anymore because they needed it to go up to the Bob Barker to refuel. wow. do you really think that this planet would be better without whales? think about it.