Japan plans to kill 935 Whales

Japan plans to kill 935 Whales

    
CANBERRA, Australia, January 2007  - Australian 
Environment Minister Ian Campbell says Japanese whalers will 
not be allowed to dock in Australia as long as he is minister. 

Japan is about to begin its annual hunt of whales in the 
Southern Ocean under a provision in the International Whaling 
Commission regulations that allows for scientific research. 
This year Japan plans to kill up to 935 Antarctic minke whales 
and 10 endangered fin whales. Humpback whales will be targeted 
in next year's hunt. 
A longtime opponent of whaling, Senator Campbell says no 
Japanese whaling vessel can come in to an Australian port. 
Australian Environment Minister Ian Campbell (Photo courtesy 
Office of the Minister) 
"They can only do that with my permission and I will not grant 
permission to Japanese whaling vessels or support vessels to 
use Australian ports," he said Wednesday. 
Two ships of the conservation organization Sea Shepherd are 
expected to begin hunting the Japanese whaling fleet southeast 
of Australia in the Southern Ocean this week. They will try to 
interfere with or disable the Japanese whalers. 
Greenpeace will sail south from Auckland, New Zealand later 
this month. The two conservation groups may both oppose 
whaling, but they are rivals and do not work together to 
achieve their goal. 
Upon hearing the news that Australia is banning port access to 
Japanese whaling ships, Sea Shepherd founder and president 
Captain Paul Watson said he is very appreciative. 
But Campbell has condemned the Sea Shepherd Conservation 
Society for "foolhardy" tactics, saying Watson's actions would 
endanger lives and hurt international efforts to end whaling. 
"His motivation to stop whaling is on the side of the angels 
and I share it," Campbell told "The Australian" newspaper 
Thursday, "but I think he's actually hurting the cause." 
The Sea Shepherd flagship Farley Mowat is not sailing under 
the flag of any nation. The ship is considered a pirate vessel 
after it was stripped of its registration in Belize. The 
Farley Mowat cleared Australian Customs in Hobart, Tasmania on 
December 29, 2006 only hours before Belize struck its flag. 
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's flagship the Farley 
Mowat, here shown departing Melbourne, Australia. The Sea 
Shepherd is based in Friday Harbor, Washington, USA. (Photo 
courtesy SSCS) 
Registered under the Canadian flag since April 2002, the 
Farley Mowat had its registry suspended by Canada last 
October. Watson sought registry in Belize after Britain pulled 
the registry in early December the same day it was issued. 
Now, as an unregistered pirate vessel, the Farley Mowat may be 
interdicted at will by any naval vessel of any government, its 
crew arrested, and the ship sunk. 
By contrast, Senator Campbell applauded the anti-whaling 
approach of Greenpeace, saying the group's efforts had his 
blessing. Greenpeace launches small inflatables to interfere 
with the whalers and displays banners in protest of whaling. 
"Greenpeace have done the world a favor by exposing these 
actions," the minister said. "Sea Shepherd are bringing the 
cause of whale conservation into disrepute." 
By fax from aboard the Farley Mowat, Watson answered 
Campbell's cricitism, saying, "As for putting the cause of 
whale conservation backwards - I have spent 40 years 
protecting whales and I see no evidence that our activities 
will cause any more damage than that of governmental 
inaction." 
Captain Paul Watson in Melbourne, Australia. December 2006. 
(Photo courtesy SSCS) 
"Australia speaks up for the whales, and I really do 
appreciate this, but words will not stop illegal Japanese 
whaling activities," wrote Watson. "As for being non-violent, 
there is a difference between violence and aggressive 
tactics." 
Sea Shepherd has been opposing illegal whaling activities 
since Watson founded the organization in Vancouver, Canada in 
1977. During these 30 years of Sea Shepherd activities no 
person has been injured and no Sea Shepherd activist has been 
convicted of a felony crime. 
Watson maintains that Sea Shepherd intervenes against illegal 
activities in accordance with the principles established by 
and contained within the United Nations World Charter for 
Nature. 
"All of the violence down here in these waters is instigated 
by the Japanese whalers," Watson wrote in his fax to Senator 
Campbell. 
"Thousands of gallons of blood are being spilled into the 
waters off the coast of Antarctica. Great whales are dying in 
abject agony from the merciless harpoons of the Japanese 
whalers. The cold air of the Ross Sea echoes with the screams 
of the whales. The cruelty is unimaginable and the slaughter 
is remorseless." 
The Greenpeace vessel Esperanza in Auckland harbor. January 2007. (Photo courtesy Greenpeace) 
"Your blessing of Greenpeace activities is interesting," 
Watson wrote. "So, Greenpeace is now officially government 
approved. I’m not surprised – governmental approval is not 
hard to come by if one does little but posture and talk. While 
we are down here in Antarctic waters looking for whaling 
ships, the Greenpeace ship is at berth in New Zealand looking 
for memberships." 
"Unlike the Greenpeace crews, we are not paid to be down 
here," Watson wrote. "Unlike the Greenpeace crews, we are 
actually down here now. Unlike the Greenpeace organization, we 
are not spending millions on advertisements and direct mail 
and door-to-door solicitations to fill the corporate coffers. 
We had to borrow money to get our second ship." 
The Farley Mowat will soon be joined by another, faster, Sea 
Shepherd vessel, the Robert Hunter, named for the Canadian 
journalist and co-founder of Greenpeace who died in May 2005. 
At his funeral Captain Watson pledged to name a ship in his 
honor. Hunter’s daughter Emily Hunter has joined the ship’s 
crew for the campaign to defend whales in Antarctica. 
The newest Sea Shepherd vessel, the Robert Hunter, flying a 
pirate flag. (Photo courtesy SSCS) 
Accusing the Australian government of all talk and little 
action to safeguard whales, Watson challenged Campbell and the 
Australian government to "come down here with your navy and 
stop us, if you refuse to stop the Japanese." 
The Sea Shepherd has received support from the Green Party of 
Australia, which issued a statement calling Campbell "Minister 
Do-little." 
"Federal Minister for the Environment Campbell’s failure to 
intervene on Japanese whaling in Australia’s Antarctic waters 
leaves him in no position to criticize the Sea Shepherd and 
its crew," said Greens Leader Senator Bob Brown. 
"Senator Campbell has condemned the Sea Shepherd but refused 
to send an Australian observation vessel to the Japanese 
killing grounds," Brown said. 
"This summer the Japanese are even targeting humpback whales 
which have returned from their breeding migration along the 
Australian coastline. The government should send a 
surveillance naval vessel to record the slaughter and show the 
world what a terrible business killing whales is," Senator 
Brown said. 
Campbell has called on Japanese whaling fleets not to use 
water cannons as a means of deterring protesters as they have 
done during past anti-whaling protests in the Southern Ocean. 
Japanese whalers turn water cannon on Greenpeace protesters 
from the Arctic Sunrise, December 16, 2001. (Photo courtesy 
Greenpeace) 
"In the deep Southern Ocean, shooting a powerful water cannon 
at a human being puts them at risk of falling into the 
Southern Ocean," the minister said, where they could die of 
hypothermia or by falling under their propellers, or under 
ships. 
At the last meeting of the International Whaling Commission, 
Australia and Japan both voted in favor of a resolution that 
governments "not condone any actions that are a risk to human 
life and property." 
But in a statement issued January 9, the Japanese Whaling 
Association threatened violent action against the Farley 
Mowat. 
"International law says any non-flagged vessel can be boarded 
for inspection, and in case of any violation or piracy, has to 
be detained with its crew arrested. If Paul Watson continues 
with his violent campaign using this vessel, then he'll be 
risking everything," said Japan Whaling Association President 
Keiichi Nakajima. 
Nakajima called on the government of Japan to ensure 
everything possible is done to secure the safety of Japanese 
researchers and crew by boarding the Farley Mowat on the high 
seas and seizing the ship and arresting the crew as pirates. 
Watson dismissed Nakajima's threats, saying that the crew of 
the Farley Mowat is prepared to defend the ship against 
Japanese violence. As for risking everything he said, "We are 
quite prepared to risk our lives and this ship for the 
whales."