Anti-whalers in clash with Japanese

Anti-whaling campaigners and the crew of a Japanese whaling ship have had a violent clash at sea, with the activists hurling containers of rotten butter and paint and getting sticks and teargas in return.

Sea Shepherd's Steve Irwin vessel was shadowing the Yushin Maru 2 in the Antarctic Ocean when the confrontation occurred on Sunday.

The Japanese Fisheries Agency says the activists threw more than 40 bottles of rotten butter and paint at the whaling ship.

Advertisement: Story continues below

Steve Irwin captain Paul Watson told the ABC that the Japanese returned fire with concussion grenades and teargas.

"They have been using concussion grenades on us," Mr Watson said.

"Today they used, also for the first time, teargas which they have in these large canisters on backpacks."

It was the latest incident in the long-running battle between the activists and Japanese.

Two weeks ago three Australians illegally boarded the Shonan Maru 2 off the West Australian coast in an effort to disrupt the Japanese whalers.

"We're chasing the Japanese whaling fleet. They're running and it's a constant confrontation," Mr Watson said.

He said the Australian and New Zealand governments should have ships in the area to monitor the situation.

"But our objective is to save as many whales as we possibly can and their objective is to kill as many whales as they possibly can," Mr Watson said.

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/environment/whale-watch/antiwhalers-in-clash-with-japanese-20120122-1qc19.html#ixzz1kHfjyNPt

Can We Save the Whales by Putting a Price On Them?

ScienceDaily (Jan. 11, 2012) — Every year, a group of anti-whaling nonprofit organizations that includes Greenpeace, Sea Shepherd, and the World Wildlife Fund spend, by conservative estimates, some $25 million on a variety of activities intended to end commercial whaling. And every year, commercial whaling not only continues, but grows.

Under the current, largely unregulated system, the number of whales harvested annually has doubled since the early 1990s, to about two thousand per year. Further, many populations of large whales have been severely depleted and continue to be threatened by commercial whaling.While protests, education, lobbying and dangerous confrontations on the high seas have saved some whales, the whaling industry shows no sign of shutting down -- or slowing down.Now, an economist and two marine scientists writing in the January 12 issue of the journal Nature suggest a new strategy that they believe could save whales by putting a price on them.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/01/120111133948.htm

HUNGER STRIKE: Desperate measures for detained Sea Shepherd whale protesters

THE three Australian activists being held on a Japanese whaling security vessel are on a hunger strike, with an environmental group saying this was the plan all along.

Geoffrey Tuxworth from Perth, Simon Peterffy from Bunbury and Glen Pendlebury from Fremantle, all from the group Forest Rescue Australia, boarded the Shonan Maru No. 2 on Sunday off the south-west coast of Western Australia.

They have been detained by the Japanese vessel's crew and could be taken to Tokyo to face piracy and trespass charges, sparking a diplomatic incident.

Forest Rescue Australia spokesman Rowan Davidson told AAP the three men were now on a hunger strike.

"That was the plan all along, that they would go on board and be on a hunger strike," Mr Davidson said.

"What is making it difficult is that Simon has high cholesterol and does not have his medication with him.

"Glen also has ADHD and didn't bring his medication with him either."

Mr Davidson said the trio had hoped the Japanese vessel would return the men to Australian shores.

Meanwhile, Errol Tuxworth said his son Geoffrey, 47, had called his parents on Saturday and told them he and two other men were going out to sea to protest against whaling.

However, Mr Tuxworth said he had no idea his son planned to protest by boarding the vessel.

He is pleading with the Government to help rescue his son but says he has received very little communication.

"We've been trying to talk to the Government but we can't really do anything more for him," he said.

Mr Tuxworth said he knew his son had his mobile phone with him when he went out to sea.

"We tried to ring him but he didn't answer," Mr Tuxworth said.

"But it wasn't switched off, so I think they must have taken it off him."

Meanwhile, a group of about 45 people gathered at the Japanese consulate in Perth to support the three detained men.

Mr Davidson said there was a strong police presence there and no one from the consulate addressed the crowd.

Continued:  http://www.news.com.au/national/sea-shepherd-protesters-may-be-tried-in-japan-after-boarding-whaling-vessel-being-detained/story-e6frfkvr-1226239481962

Sea Shepherd accuses govt of demonisation

Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd has accused Prime Minister Julia Gillard of trying to demonise its work and says a costly mission to rescue three protesters on a Japanese ship is unnecessary.

Customs is sending a boat, Ocean Protector, to pick up Geoffrey Tuxworth, 47, Simon Peterffy, 44, and Glen Pendlebury, 27, who boarded the Shona Maru II off the coast of Bunbury on Saturday night.

Ms Gillard has said the mission is expected to cost taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars.

But Sea Shepherd president Paul Watson says a vessel from his group is nearby and could easily pick the men up at little or no cost.

"All they have to do is transfer them over to our boat, we're only 15 miles from the Shona Maru II - a simple, low-cost solution," Mr Watson told the Seven Network.

"There's no need to be sending this Customs vessel.

"I think that the prime minister and attorney-general are just trying to demonise us."

Mr Watson said the federal government had not spoken to the Sea Shepherd organisation and had no idea why it had decided to send the Customs vessel.

The three men, part of the Forest Rescue organisation, had boarded the Shona Maru II as part of ongoing protests against Japanese whaling in the Southern Ocean.

Meanwhile, it was reported on Wednesday that Japanese whalers had entered Australian territorial waters, inside a 12-mile limit around sub-Antarctic Macquarie Island.

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-news-national/sea-shepherd-accuses-govt-of-demonisation-20120111-1pu2t.html

Whale Activist Vows To Fast Till Death

by brightpathvideo
Tuesday Jan 18th, 2011 3:17 PM

Tom Falvey is a friend of mine. We go way back to Greenpeace days. Tom is determined to hold onto this life threatening fast until Japan ends its hostile aggression against both the whales in the arctic seas (Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary) and against the brave Sea Shepherd crew desperately trying to protect the whales.

Please help him by writing letters to the Secretary of State and Embassy of Japan. Addresses below.

Hunger Strike Against Aggression

Japan has sent its whaling fleet to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in defiance of international law. It has also sent armed cost guard personnel with them in response to nonviolent activists upholding the law. Japan has not stated its intentions. The fact remains that it has deployed the capability to forcibly board or disable the activists' ships. The threat of deadly force in support of an illegal enterprise constitutes armed aggression.

I will fast until death unless Japan renounces the use of force against those defending the integrity of the Sanctuary.

If Japan does so I will gladly end my fast. If it refuses then it will be clear that Japan intends to physically subdue them. In that case the world community will be forewarned and have a duty to prevent such violence.

I want to live. But some things are worth dying for. If necessary I will join the countless individuals who have given their lives for two fundamental principles:

• The rule of law must prevail, and
• Armed aggression on the high seas is unacceptable

The Japanese whaling fleet pretends to be conducting scientific research in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, off Antarctica. The International Whaling Commission’s (IWC) scientific committee has rejected this cynical subterfuge several times. In 2007 the full IWC formally asked Japan to stop its lethal research (Resolution 2007-1). Japan has said no.

For the 2010/11 season Japan has unilaterally decided to take 935 Minke, 50 Fin and 50 Humpback whales, in an “objection” to IWC rules. A dead whale is worth about $200,000 on the meat market. This is actually a commercial operation; an industrial scale slaughter for profit.

This year Japan has also sent armed coast guard personnel with its fleet. This is in response to nonviolent activists defending the integrity of the Sanctuary. Japan has not stated its intentions. The fact remains that it has mobilized the capability to forcibly board or disable the activists’ ships. Obviously such tactics would put human life at risk.

The possible use of armed force to suppress opposition in a protected conservation zone takes the whaling issue to a new level. This is no longer simply about the whales. It challenges the very concept of international law. Can one nation violently impose its will on the global commons in defiance of the recognized regulatory body (IWC)?

There are good reasons for the Sanctuary’s existence. Antarctica itself is a desolate ice sheet. The cold nutrient rich ocean surrounding it is spectacularly alive. Whales are its dominant life form. Yet most whale species have been hunted to the brink of extinction. Now Japan is going after the last and smallest survivors.

This issue also has an ethical dimension. All whales have bigger brains than ours, and some seem to be as complex. We cannot prejudge beings so high on the evolutionary scale as mere natural resources. Real scientists would wait to determine the truth about their intelligence before butchering them for food.

Another ethical aspect is whaling’s extreme cruelty. An exploding harpoon rarely kills outright. The wounded whale is winched to the killer ship’s side, stuck with a probe and electrocuted with thousands of volts. It often takes 15-20 minutes for the whale to finally drown. Such prolonged agony would not be tolerated in any slaughterhouse.

Few people care about the ecology of the remote Southern Ocean. Or the possibility of advanced consciousness in marine mammals. People do care about a stable world order governed by the rule of law.

In this case, Japan has explicitly stated that it is exempt from the rule of law. It claims the right to exploit the oceanic commons as it sees fit, regardless of others’ interests. Its military presence implies a right to physically subdue anyone who stands in its way. That is a breathtaking assertion of jurisdiction over the Southern Ocean, 6000 miles from Japan.

The United States, with many other nations, has long voiced opposition to Japan’s illegal whaling. However, it has tolerated some state sponsored poaching in the Sanctuary because Japan is a major creditor that finances much of our deficit. Now its military deployment presents a direct challenge. It cannot be evaded. The threat of deadly force in support of a criminal enterprise constitutes armed aggression on the high seas.

The world community must act to ensure that Japan renounces the use of force against those who are upholding international law. The real stakes here are far higher than those of power and pride. If Japan gets away with this then it kills any hope for effective ocean conservation. It, then others, will just grab what they want. The degradation of a vital planetary ecosystem will accelerate. We will all pay a heavy price. Is the world so intimidated by Japan’s economic clout that it will allow this to happen?

Japan is unique but not privileged. It cannot make its own rules and enforce them by violence. The oceans are not Japan’s for the taking.

Current Situation – January 17, 2011

The Sea Shepherd activists are now with the whalers' supply ship. They will block any attempt at refueling. That means the whalers would have to return home at least a month early, thus saving hundreds of whales. During this process the Sea Shepherd ships will be essentially immobile and thus vulnerable to whatever action the armed coast guard personnel may have planned. This moment of truth could come at any time.

World governments have a duty to ensure that Japan does not resort to force. Failure to act means they would share responsibility for any injuries or deaths that may occur.


To express your concern please contact:

Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki
Embassy of Japan
2520 Massachusetts Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20008-2869
Tel: (202) 238-6700
Fax: (202) 328-2187
Email: jicc [at] ws.mofa.go.jp

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Department of State
2201 C St, NW
Washington, DC 20520
Tel: (202) 647-9572
Fax: (202) 647-1579
Email: colemancl [at] state.gov (her personal assistant)

Or the appropriate officials in your country.


About Tom Falvey

Tom Falvey, 61, is an environmentalist and writer in San Diego, CA. He is not affiliated with any organization. He does not represent the Sea Shepherd activists. This is a personal statement of conscience.

You can contact Tom Falvey at:

Tel: (619) 618-5713
Email: tefalvey [at] gmail.com


About this Hunger Strike

I began this hunger strike at noon on December 28, 2010.

The credibility of this protest depends on its sincerity. I will only drink water during this fast. If I fall unconscious, or into a coma, I refuse any feeding, even if death is imminent. If I develop any medical condition as a consequence, even a life threatening one, I refuse all treatment.

The only condition under which I will accept feeding or medical intervention is if Japan renounces the use of force against nonviolent activists upholding the integrity of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.
http://tomfalvey.blogspot.com/


http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2011/01/18/18669504.php

Whale Activist Vows To Fast Till Death

by brightpathvideo
Tuesday Jan 18th, 2011 3:17 PM

Tom Falvey is a friend of mine. We go way back to Greenpeace days. Tom is determined to hold onto this life threatening fast until Japan ends its hostile aggression against both the whales in the arctic seas (Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary) and against the brave Sea Shepherd crew desperately trying to protect the whales.

Please help him by writing letters to the Secretary of State and Embassy of Japan. Addresses below.

Hunger Strike Against Aggression

Japan has sent its whaling fleet to the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in defiance of international law. It has also sent armed cost guard personnel with them in response to nonviolent activists upholding the law. Japan has not stated its intentions. The fact remains that it has deployed the capability to forcibly board or disable the activists' ships. The threat of deadly force in support of an illegal enterprise constitutes armed aggression.

I will fast until death unless Japan renounces the use of force against those defending the integrity of the Sanctuary.

If Japan does so I will gladly end my fast. If it refuses then it will be clear that Japan intends to physically subdue them. In that case the world community will be forewarned and have a duty to prevent such violence.

I want to live. But some things are worth dying for. If necessary I will join the countless individuals who have given their lives for two fundamental principles:

• The rule of law must prevail, and
• Armed aggression on the high seas is unacceptable

The Japanese whaling fleet pretends to be conducting scientific research in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, off Antarctica. The International Whaling Commission’s (IWC) scientific committee has rejected this cynical subterfuge several times. In 2007 the full IWC formally asked Japan to stop its lethal research (Resolution 2007-1). Japan has said no.

For the 2010/11 season Japan has unilaterally decided to take 935 Minke, 50 Fin and 50 Humpback whales, in an “objection” to IWC rules. A dead whale is worth about $200,000 on the meat market. This is actually a commercial operation; an industrial scale slaughter for profit.

This year Japan has also sent armed coast guard personnel with its fleet. This is in response to nonviolent activists defending the integrity of the Sanctuary. Japan has not stated its intentions. The fact remains that it has mobilized the capability to forcibly board or disable the activists’ ships. Obviously such tactics would put human life at risk.

The possible use of armed force to suppress opposition in a protected conservation zone takes the whaling issue to a new level. This is no longer simply about the whales. It challenges the very concept of international law. Can one nation violently impose its will on the global commons in defiance of the recognized regulatory body (IWC)?

There are good reasons for the Sanctuary’s existence. Antarctica itself is a desolate ice sheet. The cold nutrient rich ocean surrounding it is spectacularly alive. Whales are its dominant life form. Yet most whale species have been hunted to the brink of extinction. Now Japan is going after the last and smallest survivors.

This issue also has an ethical dimension. All whales have bigger brains than ours, and some seem to be as complex. We cannot prejudge beings so high on the evolutionary scale as mere natural resources. Real scientists would wait to determine the truth about their intelligence before butchering them for food.

Another ethical aspect is whaling’s extreme cruelty. An exploding harpoon rarely kills outright. The wounded whale is winched to the killer ship’s side, stuck with a probe and electrocuted with thousands of volts. It often takes 15-20 minutes for the whale to finally drown. Such prolonged agony would not be tolerated in any slaughterhouse.

Few people care about the ecology of the remote Southern Ocean. Or the possibility of advanced consciousness in marine mammals. People do care about a stable world order governed by the rule of law.

In this case, Japan has explicitly stated that it is exempt from the rule of law. It claims the right to exploit the oceanic commons as it sees fit, regardless of others’ interests. Its military presence implies a right to physically subdue anyone who stands in its way. That is a breathtaking assertion of jurisdiction over the Southern Ocean, 6000 miles from Japan.

The United States, with many other nations, has long voiced opposition to Japan’s illegal whaling. However, it has tolerated some state sponsored poaching in the Sanctuary because Japan is a major creditor that finances much of our deficit. Now its military deployment presents a direct challenge. It cannot be evaded. The threat of deadly force in support of a criminal enterprise constitutes armed aggression on the high seas.

The world community must act to ensure that Japan renounces the use of force against those who are upholding international law. The real stakes here are far higher than those of power and pride. If Japan gets away with this then it kills any hope for effective ocean conservation. It, then others, will just grab what they want. The degradation of a vital planetary ecosystem will accelerate. We will all pay a heavy price. Is the world so intimidated by Japan’s economic clout that it will allow this to happen?

Japan is unique but not privileged. It cannot make its own rules and enforce them by violence. The oceans are not Japan’s for the taking.

Current Situation – January 17, 2011

The Sea Shepherd activists are now with the whalers' supply ship. They will block any attempt at refueling. That means the whalers would have to return home at least a month early, thus saving hundreds of whales. During this process the Sea Shepherd ships will be essentially immobile and thus vulnerable to whatever action the armed coast guard personnel may have planned. This moment of truth could come at any time.

World governments have a duty to ensure that Japan does not resort to force. Failure to act means they would share responsibility for any injuries or deaths that may occur.


To express your concern please contact:

Ambassador Ichiro Fujisaki
Embassy of Japan
2520 Massachusetts Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20008-2869
Tel: (202) 238-6700
Fax: (202) 328-2187
Email: jicc [at] ws.mofa.go.jp

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
Department of State
2201 C St, NW
Washington, DC 20520
Tel: (202) 647-9572
Fax: (202) 647-1579
Email: colemancl [at] state.gov (her personal assistant)

Or the appropriate officials in your country.


About Tom Falvey

Tom Falvey, 61, is an environmentalist and writer in San Diego, CA. He is not affiliated with any organization. He does not represent the Sea Shepherd activists. This is a personal statement of conscience.

You can contact Tom Falvey at:

Tel: (619) 618-5713
Email: tefalvey [at] gmail.com


About this Hunger Strike

I began this hunger strike at noon on December 28, 2010.

The credibility of this protest depends on its sincerity. I will only drink water during this fast. If I fall unconscious, or into a coma, I refuse any feeding, even if death is imminent. If I develop any medical condition as a consequence, even a life threatening one, I refuse all treatment.

The only condition under which I will accept feeding or medical intervention is if Japan renounces the use of force against nonviolent activists upholding the integrity of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.
http://tomfalvey.blogspot.com/


http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2011/01/18/18669504.php

Sea Shepherd clashes with Japanese whalers

Anti-whaling activists say they have already clashed with Japanese whalers in the icy seas off Antarctica.


The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society says its vessels found the first of the Japanese ships yesterday morning on the edge of the ice at 148 degrees west, 1700 nautical miles (1350 kilometres) south-west of New Zealand.

A few hours later, the Japanese whalers had shot water cannon at them, Sea Shepherd said.

Advertisement: Story continues below Sea Shepherd says it is chasing the Japanese fleet, hoping to interrupt its annual whale hunt which kills up to 1000 whales a year.

The two sides have clashed violently in the past.

Last year, a Sea Shepherd boat skippered by New Zealander Peter Bethune was sunk after its bow was sheared off in a collision with a whaling ship.

On this campaign, the whalers had been discovered before they had begun killing the mammals, Sea Shepherd leader Paul Watson said in a statement on Saturday.

Mr Watson said the Sea Shepherd ship Bob Barker had found a harpoon vessel on the edge of the ice at 11am (0900 AEDT) on Friday while the society's flagship Steve Irwin discovered another harpooner six hours later.

He said Sea Shepherd was still searching, by ship and helicopter, for what he called "Japan's floating abattoir", the Nisshin Maru.

Mr Watson gave no indication of what tactics he has planned to interrupt the Japanese whale hunt.

Japan says it is killing whales only for research.

On Saturday, news agency Associated Press said it was talking to Mr Watson by telephone from his ship when he said the whalers suddenly began blasting one of his group's inflatable boats with a water cannon.

"They just turned their cannons on our Zodiac," AP quoted him as saying.

"Right at this moment."
New Zealand-based Glenn Inwood, spokesman for Japan's Tokyo-based Institute of Cetacean Research, which sponsors the whale hunt, said he had no comment.


http://www.smh.com.au/environment/whale-watch/sea-shepherd-clashes-with-japanese-whalers-20110101-19cfb.html

Sea Shepherd clashes with Japanese whalers

Anti-whaling activists say they have already clashed with Japanese whalers in the icy seas off Antarctica.


The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society says its vessels found the first of the Japanese ships yesterday morning on the edge of the ice at 148 degrees west, 1700 nautical miles (1350 kilometres) south-west of New Zealand.

A few hours later, the Japanese whalers had shot water cannon at them, Sea Shepherd said.

Advertisement: Story continues below Sea Shepherd says it is chasing the Japanese fleet, hoping to interrupt its annual whale hunt which kills up to 1000 whales a year.

The two sides have clashed violently in the past.

Last year, a Sea Shepherd boat skippered by New Zealander Peter Bethune was sunk after its bow was sheared off in a collision with a whaling ship.

On this campaign, the whalers had been discovered before they had begun killing the mammals, Sea Shepherd leader Paul Watson said in a statement on Saturday.

Mr Watson said the Sea Shepherd ship Bob Barker had found a harpoon vessel on the edge of the ice at 11am (0900 AEDT) on Friday while the society's flagship Steve Irwin discovered another harpooner six hours later.

He said Sea Shepherd was still searching, by ship and helicopter, for what he called "Japan's floating abattoir", the Nisshin Maru.

Mr Watson gave no indication of what tactics he has planned to interrupt the Japanese whale hunt.

Japan says it is killing whales only for research.

On Saturday, news agency Associated Press said it was talking to Mr Watson by telephone from his ship when he said the whalers suddenly began blasting one of his group's inflatable boats with a water cannon.

"They just turned their cannons on our Zodiac," AP quoted him as saying.

"Right at this moment."
New Zealand-based Glenn Inwood, spokesman for Japan's Tokyo-based Institute of Cetacean Research, which sponsors the whale hunt, said he had no comment.


http://www.smh.com.au/environment/whale-watch/sea-shepherd-clashes-with-japanese-whalers-20110101-19cfb.html