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 A Japanese whaling fleet set out a few weeks ago, intent on killing 1000 whales, including 50 endangered humpbacks and 10 endangered fin whales in the Southern Oceans under the pretence of ‘research’. They will do this in Australia’s exclusion zone because the government has so far failed to act, despite Kevin Rudd’s pre-election promise to send our navy ships to monitor a whale sanctuary in the waters and that of Peter Garrett, the Minister for the Environment, who said a Labor government would pursue legal action against Japan in the international courts.
Instead the work of saving these beautiful marine creatures is left to a ‘pirate’ ship bearing the Jolly Roger flag and the name ‘Steve Irwin’. The ship – which was renamed last week with permission from Terri Irwin – belongs to marine wildlife conservation organisation Sea Shepherd. Its 39-strong crew that includes local men and women is led by Captain Paul Watson and his mission is clear: to stop the Japanese killing as many whales as possible using direct action.
Established in 1977, crews of Sea Shepherd – whose supporters include the Dalai Lama – have effectively shut down dozens of whaling ships and operations over the past 30 years. Watson has been labelled an ‘eco-terrorist’ by whalers and criticised by Greenpeace – despite being one of the organisation’s original founders – for being too ‘radical’. Sea Shepherd’s tactics include the ramming of Japanese ships if necessary and Watson is unapologetic about taking a proactive approach to protecting the whales.
“I did not establish the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society as a protest organisation,” he told media recently. “I have not gone to sea over all these years to simply bear witness to the atrocities that whalers continue to inflict upon the most gentle and intelligent beings in the seas. We aren’t here to protest, we’re here to stop people killing whales. You don’t go down the street and watch a dog being kicked to death and do nothing. You don’t sit there and watch a whale being harpooned and killed and do nothing except take its picture.”
Watson also urged Greenpeace to co-operate with the ‘Steve Irwin’ in a reciprocal agreement whereby the two organisations share the co-ordinates of the Japanese ships with each other. “The whales need all the support that we can collectively provide regardless of the petty differences in tactics and strategies between organisations,” he said. “Our concern is for defending the whales.”
ACTION:
Visit www.seashepherd.org to make a donation.
Email Peter Garrett at
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and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd at www.pm.gov.au/contact/index.cfm and tell them to make good their pre-election promises.
Email Greenpeace at
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and urge them to work together with the Sea Shepherd crew.
Help Whales Revenge achieve its goal of getting a million signatures on its petition to stop whaling at www.whalesrevenge.com.
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