David @ Tokyo

Greenpeace's latest propaganda on the ICR fleet:

"The international community must now ensure that this sub-standard fleet never returns to place the Antarctic environment and marine life at such risk again."

That's right folks - this from the same organization whose Arctic Sunrise vessel has been caught on camera ramming it's bow into the starboard side of the Nisshin Maru.

For those who've never seen it, the photos are here and here, and a couple of videos of the incident can be found here and here. Greenpeace's own video itself shows them up in an exceedingly poor light.

The ramming incident was due to either the malicious intent of the Arctic Sunrise's sub-standard captain, or due to his negligence.

On their weblog, Greenpeace stated that:

We'll get some video footage of the incident up soon. It's possible this ramming was purposefully done in a way that makes us look bad if you don't have all the facts. Fortunately, the video record makes it obvious the whalers were at fault.

Greenpeace's activists also put their sanctimonious attitude on display here and here. Obviously concerned that the video evidence shows overwhelmingly that Greenpeace was in the wrong, they put another article together here for their willingfully gullible drones, concluding that:

It appears that the Nisshin Maru may have carried out this manoeuver deliberately, with pre-placed camera operators, to obtain footage which could fool a viewer into believing that the factory ship was an innocent victim, when the opposite is true.

After reviewing the videos and then reading this statement, it's hard to know whether to laugh or cry.

In a separate incident in the Caribbean, the same rogue Greenpeace vessel illegally entered the waters of St. Kitts and Nevis:

... the ministry reported that the infringement was also a threat to the marine environment.

Specifically, in this case, “jeopardizing the barrier reef which protects the Eastern Atlantic Coastline of St Kitts and Nevis and other fragile near-shore marine eco-systems.”

Now today, we see Greenpeace suggesting that it is the ICR fleet that puts the Antarctic environment and marine life at risk.

I can think of few organizations that are as sickeningly self-righteous as Greenpeace.


A further irony from Greenpeace's corporate head, Steve Shallhorn:

"The Japanese government does not file an environmental impact assessment when the whaling fleet operates in Antarctica," he said.

"While there is no legal obligation to do this, as a signatory to the Antarctic Treaty, the Japanese government does have an obligation to follow the spirit of the international agreement and their whaling operation shatters both the spirit and intent of the treaty."

Chris Carter's "irritatingly preachy sanctimoniousness" has found it's match.

Will Greenpeace's apparent new found respect for international agreements be extended to the ICRW?

After all, as signatories to the International Convention for the Regulation of Whaling, the world's anti-whaling governments do have an obligation to follow the spirit of the international agreement, and their refusal to compromise on their extreme "no whaling" position shatters both the spirit and intent of the treaty.

Labels: irritatingly preachy sanctimoniousness, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates

Kyodo Senpaku's crew appear to have completed repairs and safety checks to the Nisshin Maru, which suffered a fire accident on the Thursday the 15th.

The accident took the life of Kazutaka Makita of Kagoshima prefecture. His body commenced it's journey home several days ago.

A Mainichi Shinbun article (now archived at Google) tells us that after leaving high school, Makita-san entered vocational training school, and found himself working on ships. He had been working on the Nisshin Maru for about 3 years. Only being able to return to his home and family for one or two months each Spring and Autumn, he was said to always be looking forward to seeing the growth of his daughter (6) and son (1).

Another excerpt from a 373news article (also at Google, my translation):

According to Nisshin Maru's owners Kyodo Senpaku (Tokyo, Chuo ward), the processing area is on the floor below the deck, 18 metres wide, 60 metres deep and 3.5 metres high. It is used for processing and freezing whale meat after investigations and dissection is complete.

Makita-san started work in the processing area on the morning of the 15th from 12 am. He finished work at 2:30, and was seen in the area's standby room. He was recognised as being missing at the time of the roll call after the fire breakout.

According to crew members, a burning smell was noticed at around 3:15 and at 3:30 a smoke detector had sounded. The ceiling was apparently burning fiercely.

...

On November 20, 1998, a fire broke out in the processing area while the Nisshin Maru was heading towards the Antarctic. The Japan Coast Guard is said to have investigated, but was unable to identify the cause.

Hopefully the cause of this latest fire in the processing area is identifiable.


Sea Shepherd, out of fuel after wasting time sailing around the Ross Sea for six weeks, made their way back to port in Melbourne where they got a suitable greeting:

Customs officers have boarded the anti-whaling vessel Robert Hunter within minutes of it docking in Melbourne's Victoria Harbour, around 3pm this afternoon.

...

Four customs officials, two of whom were armed, boarded the vessel for a routine search that could take up to two hours.

The Robert Hunter must register under a new flag before 11am tomorrow (midnight British time) when its British registration expires.

They naturally failed to get a new registration. Perhaps some very financially strapped state such as North Korea might be convinced to permit the Robert Hunter fly it's flag, but there's little doubt that respectable registries will no longer want to have anything to do with Sea Shepherd after their behaviour two weeks ago.

The Ministry of Forestry and Fisheries has a page of recent press conferences (sorry, all Japanese), and the Nisshin Maru situation, the IWC Normalization meeting, as well as the attacks on the Kyodo Senpaku vessels by Sea Shepherd have been covered quite a lot. It seems that the Japanese government may take some form of action in response to Sea Shepherd's unlawful behavior.

Elsewhere, Paul Watson is quoted as saying:

"I don't believe in the word 'sustainable', it just means business as usual under another name.

"With a population of six-and-a-half billion people on this planet and growing, there is no such thing as a sustainable fishery. There are simply too many people and not enough fish."

Australian and New Zealand fisheries workers must be at least a bit concerned about the level of support this fringe extremist appears to have in those two nations. If they aren't worried, they should be.


Last of all, the ICR has pictures, video, and a press release regarding the now operational Nisshin Maru. In their press release the ICR is critical of New Zealand's Chris Carter, who was busy in the media suggesting that the Nisshin Maru is:

"... filled with rather nasty and toxic chemicals"

That's probably the most immature thing I've ever seen Chris Carter come up with. Greenpeace for their part have been producing more Alarmist and Armageddonist propaganda throughout the whole episode:

"It is also clear that significant and harmful impact to the Antarctic environment is imminent ... " -- Esperenza crew, February 16

That's Greenpeace PR spin for: "We can't protest whaling for our fund-raising purposes, so let's call out 'wolf' as loud as possible to at least try to get some attention in the meantime".


This could be Greenpeace's last season in the Antarctic. In 2007 new IMO guidelines will be introduced which may make further voyages to protest Japanese whaling un-economical. New guidelines will define reasonable limits for peaceful protest, which will hit Greenpeace's bottom line. Unless of course, Greenpeace chooses to ignore the new guidelines. This is quite possible, given that Greenpeace currently uses non-peaceful forms of protest in relation to Japan's legal whaling activity.

Of course, one would hope that Greenpeace would cease it's protest activity in preference to do something about the real conservation problems facing the whales today:

MIKE ILIFFE: I think there needs to be an agreement on what are the real issues, and if the IWC could just focus on things like global warming, pollution of the oceans, netting, underwater noise and so on, that really are threatening whale populations, then maybe we could put the hunting issue aside as being irrelevant or insignificant in the overall scheme of things in a sustainability sense. Then they could get on with dealing with the real issues.

The ultimate decision lies with Steve Shallhorn, the corporate boss of Greenpeace Australia Pacific.

Greenpeace still ostensibly believe in their 1970's era dogma that commercial whaling can never be sustainable, despite the IWC Scientific Committee having concluded work on the RMP 15 years ago:

"... it's certainly true that if commercial whaling were resumed under the revised management procedure, it could be managed safely." -- Judy Zeh, former IWC Scientific Committee chair

The year today is 2007, and the world faces new conservation challenges. It's time that Greenpeace moved on, if they hope to remain relevant.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Kazutaka Makita

Readers will be aware of events in the Antarctic over the past week.

While there had been grave fears for the safety of human life and property in relation to violent protest activity against the JARPA research fleet, a different type of terrible situation arose with a fire breaking out beneath the deck of the Nisshin Maru. While the ICR and NZ authorities have reported that they were satisfied that the oil and fuel on board the ship is safely contained, one of the Nisshin Maru crew members was reported missing after the evacuation of the ship.

The body of 27 year old Kazutaka Makita has today apparently been recovered by his crew members.

UPDATE: Below is the text of the press release from the ICR:

JOINT STATEMENT BY DR HIROSHI HATANAKA, DIRECTOR GENERAL OF ICR AND MR. KAZUO YAMAMURA, PRESIDENT OF KYODO SENPAKU

17 February 2007 (p.m.)

“Today, the crew of the Nisshin Maru were able to search the area of the vessel that caught fire. It is with great sadness they have reported finding the body of sailor Kazutaka Makita, who succumbed to the effects of the fire.

“He was located at 08:20 am (local time) on the second deck close to where the fire began and quickly spread throughout that area.

“Mr Makita, 27, was from Kagoshima Prefecture, south of Kyushu Island. He has played an important role aboard Nisshin Maru.

“This is deeply saddening. The Institute of Cetacean Research and Kyodo Senpaku express their heartfelt sympathy to Mr Makita’s family,” Dr Hatanaka and Mr. Yamamura said.

ENDS

The Japanese version of the press release is here.

The Nisshin Maru was scheduled to return to the port of Kagoshima in April. I suppose there may be changes to those preparations in light of this tragedy.

UPDATE #2: 373news.com has more details (my translation):

The body of Kazutaka Makita (27) of Kawanabe town was discovered on the 17th at 08:20, near the meat processing area where the fire is believed to have started. The cause of death is believed to be carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning.

According to Kyodo Senpaku, owner of the Nisshin Maru and Makita-san's employer, smoke had cleared enough to make a visual search possible. 3 crew members donned oxygen masks and began their search around 08:00. Makita-san, who was last seen around an hour before the outbreak of the fire in the processing area, was found fallen at the entrance of the area's standby room.

The ship's doctor, Dr. Sugiyama conducted an autopsy, and while burns were found on both of Makita-san's arms, his death is believed to be due to large inhalation of smoke, leading to CO poisoning. The estimated time of death is unknown.

The company informed Makita-san's family by telephone. Two officials have been dispatched to Makita-san's home in Kawanabe town. Company president Kazuo Yamamoto said "This is extremely unfortunate. We are very sorry, especially as he was so young".

The fire on the Nisshin Maru broke out before dawn on the morning of the 15th. On the 17th at noon Japan time, fire extinguishing work is continuing, with heat insulating agents being used to smoulder the remnant hot spots.

There is no concern of the ship sinking, but cables have been burnt, and the possibility of the vessel continuing on it's own power will be investigated once the fire has been completed extinguished.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Kazutaka Makita

In their last ditch at media-glory, Paul Watson and his band of rogues have attacked two of the ICR's vessels - the Nisshin Maru (mother ship) on Friday, and more recently the Kaiko Maru - a dedicated sighting survey vessel.

Sea Shepherd's actions have been condemned across the board:

USA IWC Commissioner (and new Chair) Bill Hogarth:

“I’m disappointed Sea Shepherd took an action that risked lives,” said U.S. IWC Commissioner, Bill Hogarth. “We passed a resolution last year to discourage this type of rogue activity. The United States is extremely concerned that encounters like this could escalate into more violent interactions between the vessels. We still oppose Japan’s research whale hunts, but the way to resolve this is through the IWC process. These dangerous confrontations in the Southern Ocean must stop before someone gets seriously hurt or killed.”

“The safety of vessels and life at sea is the highest priority for the United States and the nations that respect the rule of law on the high seas,” said Hogarth. “I ask all parties to respect the Commission’s wishes and immediately refrain from any acts that risk human life or safety at sea.”

NZ Conservation Minister Chris Carter:

``What they are doing is putting their lives at risk and ... I feel, compromising a very strong conservation message because I think most fair-minded people would see it as extreme overreacting to put your life at risk,'' he said.

New Australian Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull:

Australia's Environment Minister Malcolm Turnbull tonight said that while Australia remained opposed to whaling, Sea Shepherd activists should refrain from dangerous action.

"We again call on Sea Shepard to conduct their operations in a safe and peaceful manner," he said in a statement.

"The type of action they are now proposing - such as ramming vessels - could result in a tragedy."

And of course the ICR:

“Sea Shepherd is conducting a campaign of outright destruction and terrorism. We have serious concerns that someone will be injured or killed in its destructive terrorism.”

“Sea Shepherd is not an environmental group. It is a terrorist vigilante group that operates outside of the law. Their two vessels are currently sailing flagless after England and Belize didn’t want to be associated with eco-terrorism and de-registered them,” Dr Hatanaka said.

As for Watson:

Mr Watson said today the Farley Mowat was almost out of fuel and he was considering giving the Japanese whaling ship, the Nisshin Maru, a "steel enema" by ramming it.

Mr Watson said his boat was now seen as a pirate vessel, and he would rather lose it in defence of whales than to bureaucrats.

We can only keep our fingers crossed that none of the ICR crew come to harm because of this outrageous behavior.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

The Nelson Mail ran an editorial in relation to the request for medical assistance for a stricken whaler from Japan to the New Zealand government:

Conservation Minister Chris Carter, an outspoken whaling opponent, says New Zealand helped "because that is the Kiwi way" but he could equally have said that it is the way of decent people everywhere.

... it is also right not to provide the whaling fleet's location to others. In particular, the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is showing a fanatical zeal in its efforts to prevent whales being killed.

New Zealand's case would not be strengthened by showing these campaigners where to harass the whalers and put their own and Japanese lives in danger.

It's always heartening to see level-headed opinion like this example coming out of the New Zealand media.

Paul Watson still just doesn't get it:

Apparently, helping conservationists oppose illegal whaling is not the Kiwi way.

People sailing unregistered vessels fitted with "hydraulic can opener" weaponry and issuing threats of ramming other vessels on the high seas will always struggle to find support from civilized governments, even if they try to claim the noble cause of conservation as their objective. Sea Shepherd's true goal is not conservation, but individual whale protection. The conservation of biodiversity on the other hand is a goal which is mutually compatible with sustainable use. And even the New Zealand government recognises that Japan's activity is not "illegal".

Andrew Darby also provides an update. As I mentioned in my own previous update, Sea Shepherd will probably be departing the Ross Sea sometime this week to refuel. It sounds like this is about to eventuate:

... after nearly five weeks in polar waters, the hardline activists of Sea Shepherd are set to leave the Antarctic without having found their quarry, and now are pleading with Australia to let their "pirate" ships land here.

... with fuel running low and claims that the Japanese have used satellites to spy on them, Sea Shepherd are in trouble with shipping authorities

...

Captain Watson said the New Zealand Government had told him that as an unflagged vessel, the Farley Mowat would be arrested if it arrived there. He is asking for a guarantee that the ships and their crews will not be arrested if they come to Melbourne.

...

Captain Watson said he was convinced the whalers were using commercially available satellite surveillance data to track and avoid the Sea Shepherd vessels.

But a spokesman for Tokyo's Institute of Cetacean Research, Glenn Inwood, blamed Sea Shepherd's problems on poor seamanship.

...

[Watson] said it was interesting that New Zealand would help a sick whaler but banned an anti-whaling ship, even when it carried New Zealand citizens. "The authorities said we would be arrested and detained if we attempt to enter a New Zealand port." He said a meeting today between NZ customs and Maritime New Zealand would decide Sea Shepherd's fate.

In Canberra, the Transport Department confirmed it was having discussions about the Robert Hunter.

"They are canvassing options," a department spokesman said. "At this stage it is not an application."

Captain Watson said the case was also being considered by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

No more Sea Shepherd for this season, and I'd not be surprised if this is the last we ever see of them in the Antarctic. They've simply taken things too far with their threats of violence.

Meanwhile ...

Greenpeace's Dutch-registered ship, Esperanza, was yesterday picking its way through the Antarctic sea ice, and spokeswoman Sara Holden said they were still confident they would find the whalers within days.

That's it for this week.

UPDATE

Sea Shepherd now claim that they have found the whaling fleet. Who knows what last ditch attempt at madness they will attempt.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

Today's update starts with a big bravo to the New Zealand government.

I've been critical of Chris Carter in the past on whaling policy details, and will probably continue to be critical as long as the New Zealand government's policy does not change. Nonetheless, this season New Zealand has acted as a responsible world citizen, firstly by refusing to provide the co-ordinates of the ICR whaling fleet to protest groups for safety reasons, and now secondly, in making medical assistance available to a crew member on board one of the whaling ships who fell ill:

New Zealand Enables Medical Aid To Japanese Whaling Crew Member
12:34 pm, 04 Feb 2007

New Zealand has enabled medical aid to be given to a crew member of the Japanese whaling fleet who fell gravely ill in the Southern Ocean, Conservation Minister Chris Carter said today.

"The crew member is now receiving medical attention in New Zealand following an urgent request for assistance from the Japanese whaling fleet," Mr Carter said.

"Despite New Zealand's strong opposition to Japan's whaling activities, and our diplomatic efforts to bring a halt to them, we do have a responsibility as a nation to act in a humanitarian way. A person's life was at risk. Under the international law of the sea, New Zealand could not ignore a call for help from a ship operating in an area of sea where New Zealand has responsibility for search and rescue.

"The crew member was delivered by ship to the edge of New Zealand's territorial waters late last week and transported ashore in a New Zealand helicopter," Mr Carter said.

"At no time did any vessel from the Japanese whaling fleet cross New Zealand's 12 mile territorial boundary, and nor has the New Zealand government provided any fuel or supplies to the Japanese fleet. All the costs of the crew member's transport and treatment will be paid for by Japan.

"I stress again that New Zealand's opposition to whaling is unchanged. There is no need to kill whales in order to study them. New Zealand will continue to bring diplomatic pressure to bear on Japan encouraging it to drop its scientific whaling programme.

"We have helped in this case because that is the Kiwi way," Mr Carter said.

ENDS

So as I said, Bravo to the New Zealand government.

It is unfortunate however that NZ's Conservation Minister finds himself releasing such a defensive comment explaining and justifying the action to the public. Surely no sensible person would criticise New Zealand or any other nation for taking such a responsible "humanitarian" action in such circumstances? (Hold that thought anyway, as this news has only just broken... you never know)

Another small question mark I have is why the Conservation Minister has found himself conducting media conferences in relation to video footage taken by RNZ Air Force aircraft, and now releasing this statement on medical assistance. I'm no expert in portfolio matters, but surely both these issues would more appropriately have been handled by the Defence Minister. Chris Carter wasn't Defence Minister last time I checked.

Best wishes to the stricken Japanese crew member...

UPDATE 17:45 PM: According to a Monsters and Critics article the crew member had a "a life-threatening gastric condition", and NewstalkZB reports that "he is suffering from acute intestinal problems and requires intensive care."


In other recent news, a post at Greenpeace's "ocean defenders" weblog reminiscent of now sacked Australian Environment Minister, Ian Campbell, raised an eyebrow. "Sara" from Greenpeace, while stressing that ...

Greenpeace does not work with Sea Shepherd ...

... complained about the British authorities' move to strike the new Sea Shepherd vessel, the Robert Hunter, off their register:

... it would seem they are happy to actively help the Japanese government de-flag a vessel that has not been involved in any criminal activity.

For years Greenpeace has campaigned to get governments, including the UK and Canada to de-flag vessels that are illegally fishing or polluting. I can't begin to tell how often we are told how difficult it is to take action and it most certainly can't be done without physical evidence of a crime being committed. How then, can the Robert Hunter be so quickly dispatched?

This is blatant hypocrisy. Mr. Blair - stop de-flagging vessels that have no criminal history ...

Perhaps one of Sara's more mature and level-headed crew mates ought to sit her down and whack it into her head why Greenpeace has a purported policy of not working with Sea Shepherd.

• It is unacceptable to deliberately ram a vessel at sea, particularly so when you have "can opener" weaponry affixed to the hull of your ship.
• It's no use pleading innocence when you've openly stated in the media that you intend to inflict damage upon other vessels on the high seas, as you have done in the past (vessels involved in illegal fishing activity never openly announce such intentions through the media, as SSCS has done with regards to their plans)
  
• Having a ship registered is a privilege, not a right, and those who abuse the privilege should not be so self-righteous as to expect some nation like Britain or Belize to take responsibility for such behaviour.

One would hope that not all the Greenpeace crew have such a lack of ability to think things through objectively.

Incidentally, the Scotsman tells a different story to Captain Watson:

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ... said the UK was acting on a request by Tokyo after its flagship, the Farley Mowat, was deregistered by Belize.

...

However the UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency said Japan had not influenced the decision, which was made because the vessel's activities did not conform with its status as a pleasure vessel on the register.

...

David Wright, the UK Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen, said the Robert Hunter's activities with Sea Shepherd are "inconsistent with her status as a pleasure vessel".

"The registrar general therefore took the decision to remove her from the register. I was made aware of these activities by the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office," he said.

I personally will take the UK Registrar General on his word, rather than put my faith in Captain Watson.

The Scotsman article also has a nice summary of international law:

• THE United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea sets out the duty of all countries to "co-operate to the fullest possible extent in the repression of piracy on the high seas".

Piracy is defined as "any illegal acts of violence or detention, or any act of depredation, committed for private ends by the crew or the passengers of a private ship or private aircraft, directed against another ship or aircraft or the people and property on board".

A vessel is considered to be a "pirate ship" simply if the people in charge intend to commit any of the above acts or have already done so.

Article 105 says: "On the high seas, or in any other place outside the jurisdiction of any state, every state may seize a pirate ship or aircraft, or a ship or aircraft taken by piracy and under the control of pirates, and arrest the persons and seize the property on board."

However the convention also says seizing a ship without adequate grounds will make the country liable for any losses or damage.

Today we are entering what is probably ninth week of research for this season. One assumes that despite the ill crew member, the JARPA II activity has been running smoothly. Assuming normal conditions prevail I would expect that there are at least another five weeks to go, but this is the first season of JARPA II in Area V and the western part of Area VI, so another 40 days at least can probably be expected.

Sea Shepherd will probably be departing the Ross Sea sometime later this week to refuel (unless they decide they want to have New Zealand come and rescue them), which should see the end of them (for this season at least, although I don't think they will ever again have much luck with ship registrations). Late-comers Greenpeace have apparently just entered the Southern Ocean, and will probably need to waste time and fuel if they are to locate the ICR fleet at all. I think they'll need more than just luck to do it. Surely some of their supporters must be asking whether there aren't more productive things to be doing?

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

It looks like a confirmation today that the New Zealand RNZAF Orion that filmed the Japanese whaling fleet last week was sent there expressly for that purpose:

Spokesman Nick Maling said the New Zealand Air Force was in the area to film the whalers' tactics so they could release the footage to the public.

Surely the Orions have better uses to be put to than this, but given the highly politicised nature of the whaling issue in New Zealand, perhaps no one sees this for the waste of resources that it is (Nick Maling has the rather dull videos up at YouTube).

The linked article is, by the way, just a frustrated whinge from Sea Shepherd about the government not releasing the co-ordinates. The government is doing the right thing and standing firm:

Mr Maling said the Southern Ocean was "vast and very dangerous" and the Government did not want to be connected to such activities.

There may be some very minor domestic political backlash over this, but it's a darn sight better than smearing one's own name in the international community.

Speaking of which, Sea Shepherd's second ship, the Robert Hunter, is now known to have been registered with the United Kingdom. However, like Belize, the UK has confirmed that it will deregister the vessel:

This month, the Robert Hunter joined Mr Watson's slower flagship, Farley Mowat, which is sailing without a national flag after authorities in Belize deregistered the ship, citing a Sea Shepherd press release saying it planned to inflict damage on whaling ships.

Soon after, the Japanese Government asked Britain to move against the Robert Hunter.

A British Foreign Office spokesman told The Age that Japan's embassy asked Britain to "control" the Robert Hunter's activities as far as was legally possible, as Sea Shepherd had said it was aiming to disrupt Japanese whaling operations.

The spokesman said the office informed the British Registrar General of Shipping and Seamen of the approach.

Registrar David Wright said the Robert Hunter was registered as a pleasure vessel and her activities with Sea Shepherd were inconsistent.

"The registrar therefore took the decision to remove her from the register," Mr Wright said. He gave Sea Shepherd 30 days' notice from January 12.

So, just another two weeks now before Sea Shepherd is officially operating not one, but two pirate vessels. Also just two weeks left before they have to go and get fuel from somewhere, as well.

Greenpeace? Probably still a couple of days away from the Ross Sea area, and they've also got to try to find the whaling fleet as well. Sea Shepherd seem to have an advantage in this respect, as they have two vessels rather than just one. Yet they've been unable to find them, so the chances for Greenpeace are probably not much better.

Finally, want to see some more bad taste anti-Japan propaganda? Click here. It's D-grade rubbish.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

In the aftermath of the excitement around the rather dull RNZAF Orion video footage of some of the ICR vessels in action, predictably Sea Shepherd are upset at their lack of ability to find the whalers (the Farley Mowat has been at sea since December 29). They have put up a plea for assistance on their website, offering a reward to anyone who will leak them the co-ordinates of the JARPA vessels.

A Frank Watson article appearing in various Australian media provides some extra colour:

Two Sea Shepherd ships have unsuccessfully searched for the Japanese whalers in the Ross Sea for the past 12 days.

"The New Zealand Air Force flew over the whaling fleet in the Ross Sea on Friday and filmed them killing whales, but the Government won't reveal the co-ordinates," Captain Watson said from the protest ship Farley Mowat.

"We'll offer a $25,000 reward to get someone to leak the co-ordinates.

"We'll save that much on fuel."

Captain Watson said the air force plane had been searching for illegal fishing but did nothing except take pictures.

As usual, Watson likes to blame the Japanese for everything, including his own inability to make good use of the donations he attracts:

"Japan requested New Zealand not to release the co-ordinates . . . That makes the New Zealand Government complicit in criminal activity, as what Japan is doing is illegal."

Previously, Chris Carter told media (see "view video") that "for a public safety reason we won't be releasing these co-ordinates to Greenpeace". Once again later, responding to Japanese concerns about the safety of the ICR crew, he confirmed that the co-ordinates would not be released.

Sea Shepherd ships Farley Mowat and Robert Hunter have another three weeks before they must return to port to refuel.

This is the real problem for Sea Shepherd now, and it's just a matter of time. They have to dock again somewhere to re-supply, but I don't think any government - even those of Australia and New Zealand - will want to risk the condemnation of the international community that would follow if they allowed Sea Shepherd to set out for the Antarctic again, now that the Farley Mowat is sailing without a flag.

"We believe the whalers are within 400 nautical miles of us, but we have information the Japanese are using satellite tracking to find out our position every day. That way they can keep clear of us," Captain Watson said.

"We have also found out US Naval Intelligence has been tracking us by satellite and giving information to the Japanese."

So apparently now, not only Japan and New Zealand but the USA too is colluding against him. Are his suggestions true? Probably not. Last year he claimed that he had "received a tip from a reliable source in Japan, that Japan has dispatched a warship to the Southern Ocean" which never eventuated, giving the impression that it was an hysterical fabrication.

The real concern out of all of this is that depending on how frustrated Watson is, he may take even more seriously dangerous actions to try to make the most of his last chance to do what he said he would set out to achieve. I'm sure the ICR folks are aware of this, and will surely be doing everything they can to ensure their safety.

The Greenpeace ship Esperanza left Auckland on Friday and will reach the Ross Sea late this week to join the hunt.

But the two groups hate each other almost as much as they hate the whalers.

Greenpeace said it did not know the co-ordinates of the whalers but would not tell Sea Shepherd even if it did.

"We have a principle of peaceful protest, which Sea Shepherd does not," Greenpeace spokeswoman Sara Holden said.

Being a great big nuisance is apparently still "peaceful" by whatever standards and principles Greenpeace holds itself to, even though it only results in delaying the inevitable. The ICR will remain in the Antarctic until they are done - simple as that.

Labels: Chris Carter, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

The New Zealand government, through "Conservation" Minister Chris Carter, has released video footage taken from on board an RNZAF Orion purporting to be "undertaking surveillance against illegal fishing in the Southern Ocean".

This is a genuine task that these Orion airships are utilised for, but is the simultaneous departure of the Greenpeace Esperanza vessel and this surveillance flight a pure co-incidence?

One suspects that the co-ordinates of the position of the ICR vessels and the direction in which they were heading will have been passed on to Greenpeace by the New Zealand government, which should find the information useful in tracking the whalers down around a week or so from now, so they can really get stuck into their propaganda campaign.

Sea Shepherd, who have been at sea since December (without a flag state), will surely be fuming if Greenpeace are able to find the whalers before them, in the case of such assistance having occurred. Expect another out lash from Paul Watson if this prediction holds true.

As for the video footage itself (no audio - courtesy of TV3), it's very tame stuff. There is no blood and struggling like we saw when Greenpeace were engaging in their "whale saving" tactics last season. The New Zealand government, if it has indeed aided Greenpeace by providing information on the position of the ICR vessels, will have to bear the negative consequences for the whale welfare statistics of the hunt on it's own conscience.

New Zealand taxpayers must also be asking themselves why the air force vessels are wasting time filming the legal activities of the ICR fleet instead of carrying out their real duties (which leads to the suspicion that they received "special orders" for this particular mission...)


UPDATE: Another article at the Southland Times has more details:

Mr Carter said the a Royal New Zealand Air Force Orion undertaking surveillance against illegal fishing in the Southern Ocean had "come across" the Japanese whaling vessels.
...
Mr Carter said the government had decided to take the "very unusual step" of releasing the footage to "allow the public to make up their own minds about Japan's whaling activities".
...
The fleet had been prepared as the vessels were clearly labelled "research" and had a large sign with their website address printed on it, he said.
...
Mr Carter would not be drawn on where exactly in the Ross Sea the footage had been taken and said the co-ordinates would not be released to Greenpeace.

We will have to take the Honourable Minister at his word!

Mr Carter said he had a meeting with Greenpeace onboard the ship last Friday and while he supported their commitment to the issue he and the Government were concerned about the tactics used.

Among the tactics Greenpeace used was manoeuvring their inflatable boats between the harpoon and the whale, a move which Mr Carter said he was concerned about.

"While I applaud their work, the Southern Ocean is a dangerous place and we are concerned that we are going to have loss of life if the protests continue in the same way."

Mr Carter said filming of the fleet could not be ruled out in the future and they would continue to "keep an eye on the fleet".

I struggle to understand why the NZ government would want to film the ICR fleet further when their objectives are supposedly surveillance for illegal fishing operations...


Andrew Darby has comment from Hideki Moronuki of the JFA:

A Japanese Fisheries Agency official, Hideki Moronuki, said he could not understand why New Zealand had decided to film the fleet or release the footage.

"It makes no sense," he said.

Especially so, since the footage is so bland and tame...

Labels: Chris Carter, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates

There is little in the way of interesting news coming out of the Australian and New Zealand media. The story is only barely getting coverage in New Zealand, and while there are more reports coming out of Australia, a lot of them seem to originate from a single reporter (Andrew Darby - he comes up with some useful info from time to time).

So this update is just a brief round-up

1) Sea Shepherd left Australia around the 9th of January, and were reported to be ready to start "hunting" the whalers a week later (see Update #8). It's the 25th of January today and they haven't yet found them.

2) On the 15th, Ian Campbell unleashed a volley of rhetoric, saying "I will not grant permission to Japanese whaling vessels or support vessels to use Australian ports ... They are banned from Australian ports as long as I'm the Minister."

No big deal. The ICR vessels don't stop over in Australia on their way back to Japan, anyway.

3) Sea Shepherd responded again to Ian Campbell's previously coddling of the Greenpeace activists:

The water cannons are easily avoided. We have never been hit with them for the simple reason that we have not placed ourselves in the path of them. Greenpeace activists deliberately place themselves in the path of the water cannons for dramatic effect. ... We are not the victims down here and Greenpeace should not be trying to make themselves the victims. ... We are not interested in stories of people whining about how violent the Japanese are to people. If someone gets knocked into the water by a water cannon then that is the reason they came down here. Besides that is what survival suits are for.

4) Still, on the 19th, New Zealand "Conservation Minister" Chris Carter, issued a "yeah, and us too", in this press release:

"Japan's whaling fleet is not welcome in New Zealand ports".

Speaking at a reception onboard the Greenpeace vessel – Esperanza in Auckland today, the Minister also urged all parties involved in this year's whaling protests to exercise restraint.

Before entering a New Zealand port any ship carrying whale products would need to apply, under the provisions of the Marine Mammals Protection Act, for a permit from the Minister of Conservation.

Chris Carter said he would not grant such a permit and reiterated the New Zealand Government's strong opposition to Japan's whaling programme in the Southern Ocean.

So no big deal there. In the same press release he also expressed concern about Greenpeace activists getting squirted with water cannons. Does Carter get all his ideas from Campbell or something?

On Sea Shepherd:

"I am very concerned by recent statements made by Captain Watson and the battle modifications made to his ships."

Carter shares his own master plan:

"The best way of solving this issue would be for Japan to abandon whaling and join other nations in respecting and conserving marine species that could be facing extinction ".

Astute and constructive stuff there from the man in charge in New Zealand...

5) On the 23rd, Ian Campbell was dumped as Environment Minister by John Howard, to be replaced by a chap named Malcolm Turnbull. This article describes Campbell as "colourless", his replacement as a "razor-quick lawyer and businessman".

I reluctantly have to say farewell to Ian Campbell - I will miss his huffing, puffing and excited bluster, as it has provided good humour value, but on a more serious level, my impression has always been that Campbell doesn't seem to have much common sense. Perhaps I have this impression because Campbell has had to try to defend Australia's hypocritical policies regarding resource management issues, so maybe I am being a little bit rough.

Bad luck, mate.

6) Oh yeah, Greenpeace. After hanging out in Auckland for 2 weeks, apparently they are leaving tomorrow, after the ICR fleet has been whaling for almost 7 weeks already.

TVNZ has a 5 minute video clip from "Close Up", giving Greenpeace the media attention that they crave. If you don't live in New Zealand and want to see a good example of typically biased coverage of the issue, I can recommend it. Greenpeace Japan's Junichi Sato also makes an appearance, basically regurgitating standard Greenpeace propaganda.

I've had a bit to say about the partiality of TVNZ previously...

Greenpeace's whalelove webpage has also now got it's content underway. I've not viewed it yet - and am still wondering whether I should bother :-)

Labels: Greenpeace, Ian Campbell, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Malcolm Turnbull, Sea Shepherd, whale love

Minami-nihon (Southern Japan) Broadcasting has a story about plans in Kagoshima (a city at the southern coast of Kyushu) to welcome home the JARPA fleet. The following is my translation:

Research whaling fleet welcome plans established [01/18 17:08]

The research fleet currently conducting research whaling in the Antarctic Ocean will visit the port of Kagoshima for the first time this April, and a committee to hold a welcome event was launched today.

The two vessels that are scheduled to visit Kagoshima port for the first time are the "Nisshin Maru (8030 tonnes) and the "Yushin Maru No. 2 (747 tonnes)", which left the port of Shimonoseki last November and are currently conducting whale research in the Antarctic Ocean. In the current research programme, 850 minke whales and 10 fin whales will be caught, and in mid-April the ships are scheduled to dock in Kagoshima, where a portion of the catch will be landed. Today the prefecture and city, along with related parties such as the chamber of commerce launched a committee, and discussions were held regarding an event to welcome the visit of the research vessels. The "Whale festival in Kagoshima" event will be held on the two days of April 21st and 22nd, with the research ships opened to the general public at Kagoshima City's waterfront park. 4000 portions of "kujira shiru" (whale soup) is set to be provided to the public free of charge.

The Nisshin Maru is the "research mother ship", while the Yushin Maru No. 2 is one of the sighting/sampling vessels (SSVs).

Kagoshima doesn't feature in the regional section of the official frozen stock figures for whale meat currently, but based on this report it seems we can expect to see Kagoshima appear when the figures for April are released later this year.

UPDATE 2007/01/19:
More articles appeared on this story in the Japanese media today. My translation from this article from 373 news:

...
Every year on it's return from the Antarctic Ocean, the research fleet is opened to the general public in several locations around the country to promote understanding of whaling. This occasion will be the 14th. In Kagoshima, the research mother ship "Nisshin Maru" and sighting/sampling vessel "Yushin Maru No. 2" will be on display, and at the "Whale festival in Kagoshima" event, 4,000 portions of kujira-shiru will be distributed free of charge, with shochu (Japanese spirits) using ice from the Antarctic also prepared for taste testing.

At the meeting of the event committee, the chair, Kagoshima city major Hiroyuki Mori greeted attendees, saying "I hope to make this an event that pleases city and prefectural citizens".

...
In April the fleet will return to Japan at Taniyama port, Kagoshima, where 1,500 tonnes of whale products will be unloaded and shipped across the country.

Kazuo Yamamura (59), president of Tokyo based Kyodo Senpaku, which is responsible for the operation of the research whaling vessels said "I hope the people take the chance to get to know the crew who will guide them around the vessels".

I think the bulk of the by-products will possibly be held in storage in Kagoshima until they are sold off in July.

Last year, judging by the regional stockpile figures, the meat was landed in the Tokyo area in addition to Kanazawa. This year the Tokyo stock levels appear to be being maintained at close to 1,000 tonnes, while the Kanazawa stockpile volume has dropped from 2,500 tonnes at the end of April to approx 500 tonnes at the end of November.

The e-kujira whale portal site has images from a similar festival held in Kagoshima last year (as well as images from other venues around the country, if you check the links at the bottom of the page).

Another page regarding the 2006 event in Kanazawa is here (lots of pictures if you are able to navigate your way through it)

Labels: Japanese media perspective, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, stockpile figures

Ian Campbell seems to be serious about his complaints about the use of water cannons by the ICR fleet to keep nuisance activists away from their vessels.

Perhaps Ian could tell us why the activists need to be within range of these water cannons in the first place? Or does he think that the ICR vessels are obliged to put up with attempts to graffiti on their ships and obstruct their research, which is conducted in accordance with international agreements that Campbell's government has and remains adhered to?

Even according to Paul Watson:

Nathan and his crewmates will maneuver their little rubber Greenpeace boats into the path of the fire hoses where they will be filmed being “attacked” with high power hoses. They will do that for hours and it looks very dramatic. But it’s all just ocean posing folks. Last year, my crew quite easily avoided the fire hoses. In fact, the only way they could have been hit would have been to steer directly into the path of the water.

Ian is making a fool of himself, as usual. Aren't politicians supposed to carry themselves with a little more dignity?


The article notes that Croatia has joined the IWC, adding another European nation to the list of member nations. Croatia neighbours fellow IWC members land-locked Hungary and Slovenia, who also recently joined the IWC. That makes one less European nation who hasn't yet joined the IWC. Croatia, like Slovenia, borders the Adriatic sea, although they have a significantly larger coastline.


UPDATE 2006/01/15: More on the article regarding Campbell's criticisms...

The IWC Resolution (2006-2) referred to in the article is entitled "Resolution on the safety of vessels engaged in whaling and whale research-related activities".

The resolution title makes it clear that the resolution deals with the safety of the ICR research vessels from "protest" activities, which last year led to a couple of ship collisions with Japanese vessels (both Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd vessels were involved).

It's no surprise that with Greenpeace and Sea Shepherd vessels not yet in the vicinity of the ICR research fleet, we haven't yet heard of any collision incidents involving "vessels engaged in whaling and whale research-related activities" this season. Clearly, the Japanese government sponsored ICR vessels are in the Antarctic for the purpose of completing their programme (conducted in accordance with international agreements that both Australia and Japan have adhered to), not to cause incidents with other vessels, which generated so much media interest last year. Whether similar incidents reoccur over the coming weeks is ultimately dependant on the intentions of those conducting the protest activities.

With this in mind, it's worth noting another part of the resolution - "the Commission and Contracting Governments support the right to legitimate and peaceful forms of protest and demonstration"

If protest groups wish to attempt to physically obstruct the activities of the research vessels (i.e., with their inflatables), they can not expect that physical actions will not be taken against them in response, to limit their effectiveness. The ICR crew are not under any obligation to act as a "protest punching bag" for the self-righteous activists of those groups. It is the choice of these activists not to limit themselves to peaceful forms of protest that introduces the "risk to human life" referred to in the article, through provocation. Such acts which provoke response should therefore not find support with any government.

The Sea Shepherd organization is at least mature enough to stick up for themselves - Paul Watson says that his crew are "prepared to die for the whales" - but Greenpeace have no excuse. There is no need for them to deploy inflatables in close proximity to the research vessels (an essential pointless tactic in terms of "saving whales"), and certainly not to conduct stunts such as that quoted in the article - trying to "hook their inflatables to whales being hauled up the stern ramp".

That is not "peaceful" protest activity.

If Greenpeace activists are big enough to sail themselves all the way down to the Ross Sea and attempt to obstruct whaling efforts in such a confrontational manner, they should not run to Ian Campbell crying like babies for help when their self-righteous behaviour results in them being sprayed with water cannons.

Greenpeace's actions in the Antarctic during the month of February will indicate the level of maturity of the people running their organization. While one can hope for both the sake of their activists as well as the ICR crew that Greenpeace change their tactics this year, surely Ian Campbell ought to know better than to indulge in this nonsense. I've said it before, but I'll say it again - Campbell should stick to his policies rather than snuggle up to groups displaying such an arrogant and self-righteous attitude as this.

At the end of the day however, whether or not Senator Campbell wishes to bathe in embarrassment is for him to decide.

Labels: Croatia, Greenpeace, Ian Campbell, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates

Following on from Ian Campbell's attack on Sea Shepherd previously, Paul Watson didn't let us down by responding quickly.

Here's a couple of highlights:

We have a gift from the Dalai Lama on our bridge. It is an icon named “Hayagriva” and it stands for the compassionate aspect of Buddha’s wrath. The Dalai Lama explained the meaning to me himself when he said, “You never want to hurt anyone, but sometimes when they cannot see enlightenment, you scare the hell out of them until they do.”

Hmmm, so now the Dalai Lama supports terrorism? To be honest, I'm not so familiar with the Dalai Lama, but everyone except the Chinese Government seems to like him...

Your blessing of Greenpeace activities is interesting. 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.

Watson's criticism of Greenpeace for being docked in New Zealand is the same as mine, but who cares about them anyway.

He finishes with style:

And if our passion and our compassion sets your “movement” backwards and into “disrepute,” then I’m sure the whales won’t care, Sir.

They will be dead.

Thank-you

If Campbell has any political smarts he'll "no comment" any media approaches regarding this.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

Ian Campbell's on/off love affair with the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was on display once again in the media today, with Senator Campbell, who Sea Shepherd last month described as "honourable", now declaring that:

"Sea Shepherd are bringing the cause of whale conservation into disrepute.''

Presumably Campbell has realised that it was politically unwise to call Paul Watson and wish him well, particularly since in other parts of the world such as the United Kingdom and Belize, officials there were seeing it fit to strike the Sea Shepherd terrorist vessel (what else is a vessel with a "can opener" ramming implement attached to it?) from their registers.

Despite today's clarification, I wonder if Campbell would still welcome Sea Shepherd vessels to Australia's Antarctic bases in anything other than an emergency?

Stupidly, however:

Senator Campbell praised the more peaceful efforts of Greenpeace in recording the "gutless'' whale slaughter and using small vessels to disrupt the hunt, saying the group's efforts had his blessing.

Campbell would do well to stick to his own policies, rather than snuggle up to Greenpeace or Sea Shepherd. Greenpeace's tactics are possibly going to end up on the wrong side of the new IMO guidelines, as well as Sea Shepherd's more overtly unacceptable behaviour.

Anyway, we can again await Watson's reaction, remembering his rather upset tone from last season.


The ICR has another press release out today, this time on public opinion polls. They've too have picked up on the fact that Greenpeace Japan misrepresented the results of an opinion survey that they themselves commissioned. I previously detailed the misrepresentation here, based on a Japanese version of the poll result, but the ICR has helpfully found an English translation (here for those who care to take a look).

The ICR also states that:

"Whalemeat is a popular meal choice by the Japanese public despite a drastic decrease in supply and, contrary to claims by Greenpeace, demand is increasing each year."

This basic trend is of course what we've been observing through stockpile figure analyses (November figures should be out any day now, maybe on the 12th)

Labels: eco-terrorism, Ian Campbell, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

No confrontation in the Antarctic for at least about another week it seems:

... activists from the group Sea Shepherd said their two ship navy, which aims to disable the whaling vessels, would reach Antarctic waters and begin to hunt for the fleet in about a week.

There's more detail about the Farley Mowat's piracy paraphernalia as well:

Engineers have fitted a solid steel hydraulic ram with a bulldozer-strength blade to the Sea Shepherd's flagship, Farley Mowat, which has been stripped of its registration in Belize and could now be considered a pirate vessel under international law.

Sea Shepherd's president, Paul Watson, said the "can opener" was operational and far more serious than a version used last year to scrape the side of the Japanese resupply ship, Oriental Bluebird. He said its placement at deck level meant it could damage, but not endanger, the hull of another ship.

He said Sea Shepherd had never caused human injury in its direct actions, and he hoped to inflict just enough damage to a whaling vessel to force it to return to port.

In this day and age, one would hope that a ship with such an implement attached to it would be consider a pirate vessel, regardless of whether or not it was registered.

Apparently the new SS vessel has been named the "Robert Hunter", after one of Watson's late mates.


The Japan Whaling Association has another press release regarding Sea Shepherd's de-registration from Belize's registry.


As for Greenpeace? (Who?)

Greenpeace is also preparing its eighth campaign voyage south, later in the whaling season than ever before.

They've never been less serious about "saving whales" than today, it seems. This season's effort looks to be little more than "us too" tokenism at best, or merely donation attracting video footage generation at worst.

Australia's ABC Local Radio AM programme also has comment from GP's Sarah Holden and ICR spokesman Glenn Inwood, here.

Labels: eco-terrorism, Greenpeace, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd

TVNZ (Television New Zealand) is New Zealand's publicly owned television broadcaster. Of course, New Zealand is, generally speaking, a developed western nation with a democratically elected government, and so as one would expect TVNZ states that one of their "Strategic Goals" is to "Act with editorial independence" (TVNZ corporate brochure, page 2).

Thank goodness for that, right.

Perhaps you can imagine my surprise when I saw the following on TVNZ's national news homepage today:

New Greenpeace ship to dock in NZ

Jan 8, 2007

Greenpeace's newest ship, the Esperanza, will make a port of call in New Zealand for the first time on Tuesday before it heads south to campaign against the Japanese government's whaling programme in the Antarctic's Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

The 72.3m Esperanza is expected to arrive in Auckland late morning and will be greeted with a powhiri at Princes Wharf.

Greenpeace Executive Director Bunny McDiarmid says that the crew stopped many whales from being killed in the Antarctic last whaling season and that this year they will be carrying out activities designed by supporters that were posted on their website.

During her global expedition, the Esperanza has been the home, office and workshop for the crew in some of the most remote regions of the world and has confronted pirate fishers, promoted marine reserves and threats, and highlighted the overfishing of tuna.

The crew are from around 19 different countries, but up to 40 people can be on board including researchers, campaigners and scientists.

The Esperanza has been fitted with the latest in internet technology, with broadband on the ship 24 hours a day, in order to communicate with the world what she is up to, at any time of the day or night.

Greenpeace bought the ship in 2000 and she was re-named Esperanza (Spanish for "hope") through a competition for Greenpeace's hundreds of thousands of cyberactivists around the world.

Esperanza will be in New Zealand for two weeks before leaving to Antarctica.

Source: One News

Righto, so TVNZ's One News is the source, of this 244 word news item. Why then is the following posted on scoop.co.nz in their politics section?

Ship Arrives in Auckland Before Whaling Campaign
Monday, 8 January 2007, 11:38 am
Press Release: Greenpeace New Zealand

Greenpeace Ship Arrives in Auckland Before Whaling Campaign

Auckland, 8 January 2007-- Greenpeace ship The Esperanza will arrive in Auckland tomorrow morning, to prepare for the organisation's campaign against the Japanese Government's whaling programme in the Antarctic's Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

The 72.3m Esperanza is Greenpeace's newest ship and it will be the first time she has visited New Zealand. She and her crew will be greeted with a Powhiri at Princes Wharf around 11 a.m.

The Esperanza will be in New Zealand for two weeks, when she leaves for the Antarctic.

She will be open for public visits for the next two weekends – on 13/14 and 20/21 January from 10 am to 4 pm.

"We welcome the Esperanza to New Zealand. This voyage will be the last journey in her year-long global "Defending our Oceans" campaign to highlight threats to the oceans," said Greenpeace Executive Director Bunny McDiarmid.

"Last whaling season the Greenpeace crew stopped many whales from being killed in the Antarctic. This year they will be carrying out activities designed by supporters who have posted their ideas on http://www.greenpeace.org.nz/whales ," she said.

During her global expedition, the Esperanza has been the home, office and workshop for the crew in some of the most remote regions of the world. She has confronted pirate fishers off the coast of West Africa, promoted marine reserves and threats to the coastal marine systems in the Atlantic, the Red Sea and the coastlines of India, and highlighted the overfishing of tuna in both the
Mediterranean and the Pacific.

The crew are from around 19 different countries, but up to 40 people can be on board including researchers, campaigners and scientists.

The Esperanza has been fitted with the latest in internet technology, with broadband on the ship 24 hours a day, in order to communicate with the world what she is up to, at any time of the day or night.

Greenpeace bought the ship in 2000 and she was re-named Esperanza (Spanish for "hope") through a competition for Greenpeace's hundreds of thousands of cyberactivists around the world.

For fun, I've splashed with red most of the similarities between the TVNZ piece (apparently sourced from One News) and the PR article from Greenpeace New Zealand. The majority of the 244 words of the TVNZ piece can miraculously be found within the latter. How about that for "editorial independence"? Or does "editorial independence" simply entail cutting lengthy pre-canned media articles down to fit within 250 word limits?

We can but wonder about TVNZ, but as for why Greenpeace is spending two weeks in Auckland offering the public visits around the ship instead hurrying up and of heading down to the Antarctic straight away, no guesses are required - their lethargy indicates how effective they really think their "whale saving" was last year. Maybe the Pirate Watson will have a crack at them over this?

Labels: Greenpeace, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates

Sea Shepherd's Paul Watson has responded to the Farley Mowat's de-registration by IMMARBE. Unfortunately it appears that the vessel was able to leave Hobart just prior to the de-registration:

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society ship Farley Mowat is now officially a pirate vessel.

We are at sea without a flag, in search of illegal whaling operations in hostile and remote waters at the bottom of the world. The Farley Mowat cleared Australian Customs in Hobart, Tasmania on December 29, 2006 only hours before the nation of Belize struck our flag.

The Belize registry had only been issued ten days before on December 19, 2006. The registry was sought in Belize after Britain pulled the registry in early December the same day it was issued.

In October, the Farley Mowat registered under the Canadian flag since April 2002, had the registry suspended by Canada.

Sea Shepherd also had trouble earlier in 2006 when South African officials detained their vessel.

The Sydney Morning Herald has a little more:

An email sent by a registry official to Captain Watson said port authorities in Hobart, where Farley Mowat was docked, would be asked to ensure the ship did not leave port with Belizean registration. But Captain Watson said he had left hours earlier. "My instincts told me that we had better 'get out of Dodge'."

All of this creates an interesting situation, with the vessel having left port before the authorities could prevent it:

• Apparently stateless ships have no protection under international law. The whaling fleet is essentially owned by Japanese public-interest corporations now, so any actions taken against the fleet directly affect interests of the Government of Japan. There are laws and precedents for stateless vessels being boarded on the high seas, but as far as I've been able to find, they usually involve stateless ships suspected of illegal fishing activity or transport of weapons.
  

• Where will the Farley Mowat refuel and resupply? The Australian ports have been aiding SSCS to date, but with their flag struck off yet another register, one wonders whether they would seriously consider letting the Farley Mowat dock and the depart once again.
  

Back in December 2005 Watson said that he had "received a tip from a reliable source in Japan, that Japan has dispatched a warship to the Southern Ocean", speculating that they might seize the Farley Mowat in accordance with UNCLOS provisions. Obviously his tip wasn't reliable at all, and I doubt we'll see any such actions from Japan, but if a US Navy ship happened to be in the region - who knows.

As I suspected in my previous post, Watson has started his whinging about Japanese influence again:

This is all apparently part of a strategy by Japan to use its economic muscle to lean on any nation that allows us to be registered under their flag.

Another possibility that Paul should consider is that no sane registry would want to be seen to aid and abet his organizations actions.

Watson also says that:

"If anyone wishes to stop us from protecting whales they will have to sink us"

and the SMH quoted him as saying:

"I say in absolute seriousness at the risk of sounding dramatic, but my crew and I are prepared to die for these whales if need be."

The Farley Mowat isn't capable of keeping up with the research vessels, even if they are able to find them, so I don't think they'll have the opportunity to prove their madness.


Meanwhile, the "whale safe beer" campaign is coming in for additional criticism:

Don't get me wrong, I am in no way in favor of needlessly killing whales. Frankly I don't know much about the issue. The WSB people's position is that Japan, the country, with a wink and a nod allows its fisherman to catch whales despite a world wide moratorium on the practice. Therefore any beers brewed in Japan or beer companies that are supported in any way with Japanese money are responsible. What? Could there be a more insane position? Lots of countries allow pretty despicable things to happen but does this mean that all industry from that country should be boycotted? What is Japanese beer supposed to do about the whale killing? I hope beer lovers will see this cheap, baseless sales tactic for what it is and ignore Bluetongue's proposed boycott.

Labels: JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd, whale safe beer, Whaling

As one would have expected, it's been a quiet Christmas / New Year's break in whaling land (why protest when there is no one watching TV?) but there has been one interesting development.

As I mentioned in my first JARPA II 2006/2007 update, states to which the Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace protest vessels are flagged have a responsibility to take actions with respect to inappropriate behaviour by these vessels.

Subsequently, we learned that Sea Shepherd had struggled to have it's slow Farley Mowat vessel registered in Britain, but had been successful registering with Belize (Belize somewhat famously voted against the pro-sustainable use bloc at the IWC meeting in 2006 on every measure, despite previously having been accused of selling it's vote to Japan by Sea Shepherd and others).

The big news today is that Belize has already taken actions with respect to the Farley Mowat - apparently it has torn up the registration:

Belizean flagged ship de-registered for threatening whalers

It is a common practice for vessels that engage in illegal fishing to be punished by the nation whose flag they happen to fly. But last week, instead of a rogue fisherman being sanctioned it was a ship suspected of engaging in radical environmental action that lost its papers. According to a release from IMMARBE, the International Merchant Marine Registry of Belize, the motor vessel "Farley Mowat" was registered to fly the Belize flag on December fifteenth as a pleasure craft that would also conduct research on the Belize Barrier Reef. Subsequent investigations, however, revealed that the ship was in Australian waters about to embark on an all too familiar mission to ram and otherwise interfere with ships engaged in whaling. The owners of "Farley Mowat" admitted to IMMARBE that the ship would be put on loan to the Sea Shepard Conservation Society, a militant environmental group which since 1979 has engaged in various aggressive actions against the whaling industry, including sabotage and ramming. According to the IMMARBE release, although Belize has voted with the anti-whaling bloc at the International Whaling Commission, it cannot condone acts that threaten life and property at sea. Consequently, the "Farley Mowat" was de-registered by IMMARBE on December twenty-ninth. Although in its early years as a "flag of convenience" registry IMMARBE earned a reputation for laxity, it has recently cleaned up its act to the point where it is one of only nine registries in the world to hold the U.S. Coastguard QUALSHIP 21 certification.

Presumably this once again puts Sea Shepherd in a bit of a pickle - the Farley Mowat is apparently also carrying a helicopter which will be indispensable to them in searching for the whaling fleet, once they arrive in the Ross sea vicinity. Their other newly purchased ship, apparently fast enough to keep pace with the whaling fleet, will be rendered ineffective without a location with which to find the research vessels.

There's no mention of this situation on the Sea Shepherd website yet, but one would not be surprised if Captain Watson gives it a mention, and turns back to his previous accusations of Japanese influence in Belize in light of this. Then again, maybe Greenpeace will again be the subject of Watson's ongoing frustrations.

Labels: Belize, eco-terrorism, IMO guidelines, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd, Whaling

Japanese representative Hideki Moronuki has hit the nail on the head with the following statement being reported in the aussie media, with regards to SSCS's openly conceded tactics of vessel ramming:

"The activity is very, very dangerous and whenever you look at the website of Sea Shepherd, they say they haven't killed or injured anybody, but their activities may kill or injure people".

That's completely right.

If Watson thinks his tactics won't harm human life, why does he think the whalers should be worried about his tactics?

Last year he liked to claim that the whalers were "running away" whenever his ship appeared. Wishful thinking? A more accurate assessment would seem to be that the SS flagship was simply to slow to keep up, which is why SSCS have purchased a new vessel for this year.

Another article gives another angle on Watson's tactics:

THE hardline anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd plans to disrupt Japan's summer whaling program in Antarctica by inflicting just enough damage on the whaling vessel to force it to comply with strict Japanese safety regulations and return to port for repairs.

Sea Shepherd's president, Paul Watson, told the Herald yesterday that he had no intention of endangering life. Sea Shepherd activists have sunk 10 whaling vessels in the North Atlantic since 1979. Last summer it tried to foul the propellers of the whaling factory ship Nisshin Maru, the vessel it will soon be chasing.

Of course, SS already tried such things last season, without success (thankfully). What's more, such actions clearly seem to run afoul of relevant international agreements (as the ICR pointed out last year). For example, Article 101 of UNCLOS reads:

Piracy consists of any of the following acts:

(a) any illegal acts of violence or detention, or any act of depredation, committed for private ends by the crew or the passengers of a private ship or a private aircraft, and directed:

(i) on the high seas, against another ship or aircraft, or against persons or property on board such ship or aircraft;

(ii) against a ship, aircraft, persons or property in a place outside the jurisdiction of any State;

(b) any act of voluntary participation in the operation of a ship or of an aircraft with knowledge of facts making it a pirate ship or aircraft;

(c) any act of inciting or of intentionally facilitating an act described in subparagraph (a) or (b).

Of course I'm sure Watson has some big fancy porkie to excuse himself from this, but I wonder how much longer the officials will be patient.

Watson has also been having other problems:

... the Farley Mowat's departure was delayed over its registration.

Attempts to shift the registration from Canada to Britain had to be abandoned when British authorities refused to allow the ship onto their books.

Captain Watson alleged that the British were told by Greenpeace that his organisation was an eco-terrorist group. He eventually obtained a registration from Belize.

Belize? Depending on how far SS go with their obstruction this year, the Belize IWC representative might be in for an uncomfortable IWC meeting next year. It seems likely that further resolution be passed related to the safety of whale research vessels.

Anyway... As for Greenpeace:

Greenpeace confirmed it was sending one vessel south: the Esperanza, a fast ship that stayed with the fleet for 29 days in 2005-6. Its campaigners, equipped with fast inflatables, cameras and satellite access, opened an unprecedented window into the whalers' activities.

Esperanza left Mexico on December 11 for Auckland, and is unlikely to reach the whaling fleet until late January. Last year whaling ended on March 20.

So only one ship from GP this season (no Arctic Sunrise), and they won't show up until such a point in time that the research fleet will already be a long way towards it's quota. But then, as Watson has charged, Greenpeace appear to be more interested in this for the fundraising opportunity presented than any genuine concern for the environment.

Labels: eco-terrorism, Greenpeace, JARPA II 2006/2007 Updates, Sea Shepherd, Whaling