Posted on 01/07/2010 6:52:08 PM PST by myknowledge
The Sea Shepherd's anti-whaling speedboat Ady Gill has sunk after it was sliced in two by a Japanese whaling vessel during a clash in the Southern Ocean on Wednesday.
Sea Shepherd founder Paul Watson told ABC News Breakfast the Ady Gill went down shortly before 3:30am AEDT while it was being towed to a French research base by the group's Bob Barker boat.
"I think they were towing for about six or seven hours," he said.
"Even the act of towing was taking more water on. The Japanese vessel had cut the vessel completely in half and made it unseaworthy."
Six Sea Shepherd crew members were almost thrown overboard and one crew member suffered broken ribs when the Japanese whaling security ship, the Shonan Maru 2, ploughed through the bow of the high-tech Ady Gill on Wednesday.
Both the Japanese whalers and the Sea Shepherd crew blame each other for the incident, which happened in Antarctic waters.
But Mr Watson has defended his crew and says the risk of dying on the high seas is worth it if it allows the group to save whales.
"My crew are well aware of the risks that we have to take to protect whales down here. I think those risks are worth taking," he said.
"I can tell you now that if the oceans die, civilisations collapse and we all die.
"People die everyday to protect oil wells and real estate and we call them heroes and pin medals on them. I think protecting the diversity of oceans... is a far more noble cause."
'Harassment and attack'
But Glenn Inwood from Japan's Institute of Cetacean Research says Mr Watson has a dangerous attitude.
"Paul Watson has said before that he's willing to give any Japanese vessel what he calls a steel enema by ramming his ship into the stern of any Japanese vessel," Mr Inwood said.
"He also proudly displays the number of vessels he's sunk on the side of the Steve Irwin.
"You can understand why the Japanese have put security vessels down there.
"To say Japan has broken maritime laws can't be justified in this instance when you're under constant harassment and constant attack from these ships."
Mr Inwood says Japan's whaling program is internationally recognised as legal.
"The International Whaling Commission (IWC) have sanctioned it. The New Zealand government recognises its legality, and many members of the IWC do as well," he said.
"Sea Shepherd is trying to prevent Japan from conducting what is a legal operation under the rules of the IWC."
Yesterday Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard asked the Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) to investigate the incident and said the findings would be made public.
She says the Government reserves the right to take international legal action if diplomacy with Japanese officials fails, and has warned that evidence has already been collected to launch such action.
New Zealand is also investigating the incident because the Ady Gil was registered there.
'An act of war'
Mr Watson says an insurance payout on the Ady Gill is unlikely because the incident was a deliberate act.
"It's a $1.5 million loss for our organisation," he said.
"I think the Japanese deliberately took that vessel out; they saw it as a threat and they were under orders to take it out.
"It would be an act of war so there wouldn't be any insurance on it."
Mr Watson says two Japanese harpoon ships were nearby but did not offer any help after the incident.
"They were responsible, they destroyed the vessel ... I think they should have offered some sort of assistance but they refused to acknowledge any distress signal," he said.
Mr Watson says they were able to remove all the fuel from the speedboat to prevent any pollution.
Mr Watson is urging the Federal Government to take a tougher action against Japanese whalers.
"In the six years that we've been doing this, we've never caused an injury to anyone, we've never broken a law... and now they have sunk one of our vessels," he said.
"[Federal Environment Minister] Peter Garrett has become the master of restraint. He made a campaign promise to end whaling; now let's see him [do something]."
Mr Watson says the Government should send a boat to Antarctic waters, where the Sea Shepherd's other boats - the Steve Irwin and Bob Barker - are continuing to pursue Japanese whalers.
Mr Watson says the boats are chasing the Japanese fleet and the whalers have not killed a whale in two days.
Diplomatic approach
Meanwhile, New Zealand officials have met with representatives from the Japanese embassy in Wellington to discuss the situation.
The ABC understands that at the Wellington meeting, Japan said it regarded the incident as "regrettable" but a "low-key event".
This morning a spokesman for the New Zealand Foreign Minister, Murray McCully, said contrary to media reports, Japan had not lodged a stern complaint with the New Zealand Government.
He said Japanese officials agreed with New Zealand that their citizens needed to have better regard for people on the high seas.
The spokesman said legal action over the collision had not been discussed, because it still had not been established who was at fault.
Maritime New Zealand has launched an investigation.
Actually, conservation efforts of hunters are responsible for the amazing comeback of the North American wild turkey and also white-tailed deer populations in the Southeastern U.S.
What makes someone a “vile human being” for backing whalers? Our own country has had whaling vessels, as has England and many others. Do you castigate them for their involvement? Do you cry at night about what humanity has done to whales over the centuries, even hating Inuit? Or are Inuit your “Politically Correct” race that can harvest whales in your mind?
I care so little about this story that I will not read this thread. I wonder if the captain of the Agy Gil gets chewed out or promoted. Knowing the eco-lib mentality, I’ll wager the latter.
Well, I would expect an MBA to have the ability to properly state their case.
Apparently you didn’t do well in school.
I don’t support the envirowackos I think they are vermin. I support animals who are at risk of extinction. The envirowackos only care about money and publicity.
“Hey, let’s see how my composite hull stands up against this steel one!” LOL
And the minks were wearing fur, so they deserved to die!/sarc.
Observation and common sense.
We (humans) eat cows, pigs, chickens, turkeys, fish, etc. and unfortunately, brocolli.
Is there any shortage of any of these things?
Whales as pests? I haven’t heard that one before. Get more rest.
Sea Shepherd’s record of violence:
http://www.highnorth.no/Library/Movements/Sea_Shepherd/se-sh-re.htm
“First of all I am a 26 year old male with an MBA in finance. For you dummies that means Masters of Business Administration.”
You stopped at a Masters degree!
You insist they are endangered. Maybe yes, for some, maybe no for others.
===>>> Are you going on the record here to say you would have NO problem with harvesting whales, if they were not endangered???
Think that over for a moment, while I share one of my favorite
whale blubber recipes...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
How to cook a whale
Recipe:
3/4 to 1 kilo whale meat
50 g butter, tallow or lard
2-3 onions
Salt and pepper
Laurel leaf (optional)
600-700 ml water
Sauce colouring (caramel)
50 g flour
200 ml milk
Clean the meat: some say it’s enough to slice off about a centimetre off each side of the piece, others recommend soaking in milk overnight. This is only to ensure there will be no oily taste to the meat, but if it has been properly handled in the first place, it will not taste oily. Cut into steaks and beat with a meat mallet.
Slice the onions. Heat the cooking fat in a frying pan, brown the meat on all sides and put in a cooking pot, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Brown the onions in a frying pan and add half to the pot with the meat, along with the laurel leaf, if using. Set half the onions aside. Pour water into the frying pan and deglaze. Pour over the meat and cook for 15 to 30 minutes or until the meat is tender. Arrange the steaks on a serving dish and arrange the browned onions that were set aside on top.
Make a paste with the milk and flour and use it to thicken the cooking liquid left in the pot. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with cooked potatoes and vegetables arranged around the meat and sprinkle parsley or cress over the dish. Serve gravy on the side.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So Dengar, will you go on the record here as supporting the
lawful harvest of every species of whale, if they are not
“endangered”?
They aren't endangered. Antartic Minke's are among the most abundant of the species. Taking a few hundred from a population of hundreds of thousands does not harm the population.
So, by your own words and the words of your source, the whales are not “endangered” at all?
Then let’s have at them!
Well there Dengar01, you asked for it, you get it......
drum roll.......
Ta Da!
http://www.icrwhale.org/QandAjapanresearch.htm
Chew on that for a while. A whale population of around 760,000 and they take 440. Big deal. Get over it.
Why aren't the Sea Shepherd terrorists harassing Norwegian and Icelandic whalers?
What's got your panties in such a wad over a few hundred Minke whales, none of which are on any endangered species lists?
The Japanese, Norwegians, and Icelanders have international law and agreements on their side; they have allowances to harvest "x" number of whales of specific species per year. Don't like it? Get the laws changed. In international waters, your feelings don't mean squat.
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