Posted on 12/26/2005 9:47:38 PM PST by Dundee
Whalers slam Greenpeace pursuit
JAPANESE whalers have called on Greenpeace to stop pursuing its fleet in the Southern Ocean, accusing the environmental organisation of engaging in piracy.
In an open letter to Greenpeace, Institute of Cetacean Research director-general Hiroshi Hatanaka said the environmentalists were behaving dangerously in pursuing whaling ships.
"Greenpeace's intention to highlight environmental degradation of the seas with the aim of protecting the marine environment is in itself laudable," Dr Hatanaka said in the letter.
"However, your organisation's actual behaviour is nothing but an opinionated display of self-righteousness.
"I strongly request Greenpeace stops pursuing our research vessels immediately and refrains from coming any closer in future."
Two Greenpeace vessels, the Esperanza and the Arctic Sunrise, have spent the past week deep in the Southern Ocean engaged in a cat and mouse game with a fleet of six whaling ships.
Japan plans to slaughter 935 minke whales and 10 fin whales in Antarctic waters this summer as part of its whale research program.
Greenpeace expedition leader Shane Rattenbury has claimed success in preventing some whales being taken, putting inflatable rafts in between harpooners and the whales.
But on at least one occasion, a Greenpeace ship and a whaling ship have been engaged in a minor collision.
Dr Hatanaka said that since December 21, in spite of repeated warnings and requests to move away, Greenpeace had continued to approach the mother ship Nisshin Maru and other fleet vessels.
"Your organisation continues to put in danger the lives of your crews by trying to board our vessels," he said. "In short, these actions amount to piracy."
Greenpeace chief executive Steve Shallhorn yesterday defended the tactics, saying he would welcome any inquiry into the conduct of Greenpeace skippers and ships at sea.
Dr Hatanaka said data on Japanese Greenpeace activists engaged in the obstruction of the whaling would be submitted to authorities as evidence for indictment and criminal prosecution.
"Furthermore, any escalation of Greenpeace's violent activities would correspond to piracy as defined by Article 101 of the United Nations Law of the Sea," he said.
He also criticised the crew of Sea Shepherd boat Farley Mowat, which he said had deployed a mooring line with the intent of entangling the Nisshin Maru's propeller.
Farley Mowatcaptain Paul Watson said on Sunday the incident occurred when his ship tried to come alongside the Nisshin Maru.
He said the whaler headed directly at the Farley Mowat and he deployed the mooring line to deter it.
Mr Watson said the Nisshin Maru then changed direction to avoid a collision.
For once, France had the right idea...
It would seem to me that Piracy is grounds for having ones ship scuttled on the high seas. But then this is the UN law that is being referenced.
Is he saying that if Greenpeace does this again he'll send them a sternly worded letter ?
Greenpeace got caught in Alaska with no oil spill plan while they were in harbor on some protest/fund raising event.
The police/harbor master told Greenpeace that they had to comply with the law on oil spill plans.
Greenpeace then snuck out of the harbor that night...and got caught because of quick police work.
The jury convicted Greenpeace of several charges, but a friendly judge is trying to let Greenpeace off the hook.
A developing story that the Elite Media is not covering...
Note to whalers: Carry this type of harpoon too.
Why not let the harpoon gunner deal with the GreenPeace types. With a careful aim, it might be possible to string two or more "activists" on the harpoon line with one shot.
Would that qualify as a hippie necklace? A Peace necklace? A GreenPeace necklace?
Or would the correct term be 'chumming for shark'?
"Greenpeace USA had cried wolf one too many times."
"With credibility down, US membership fell from some 1 million members to 300,000."
"By the late 1990s, the organization was in financial crisis."
"It slashed budgets and laid-off staff. Greenpeace USAs entire board resigned."
"Executive Director Barbara Dudley resigned from the lead staff role at Greenpeace USA in May, 1997 after five difficult years in Washington, DC."
"Greenpeace was also in trouble north of the border. Revenue Canada revoked the charitable status of Greenpeace Canada in 1989, amid concerns the organization was not providing a discernible benefit to the public."
"As co-founder of Greenpeace, former Director of Greenpeace International and former President of Greenpeace Canada, I am saddened by the direction members of my former organization have taken."
Co-founder of Greenpeace, Dr. Patrick Moore is Chairman and Chief Scientist of Greenspirit Strategies Ltd. in Vancouver, Canada.
http://www.greenspirit.com/home.cfm
The Japs should declare war on Greenpiece...in accordance with UN law, of course!
So? That seems like a MORE reasonable reason to bang the boat. The French were conducting critical military work during the cold war. Greenpeace attempted to disrupt it. France disrupted the disrupters.
It was an act of terrorism that resulted in the death of one of the Greenpeace crew.
By planning to f*ck with the military of a existing nation Greenpeace moved from being an advocacy organization to being a private militia.
A women involved in the sabotage is now a highly placed French intelligence officer.
Well she was ordered to carry out a mission and did so successfully. I would not expect her to be punished for that, anymore than I would expect individual Marines to be punnished because some liberal presstitute doesn't like the target of a Navy bombing mission. Duh!
So when the French are involved in a terrorist act against Greenpeace the French are heroes
Who said it was heroic? Needed, maybe. But it was a no risk mission, not the stuff heros are made of.
but if they go against US foreign policy in Iraq they're surrender monkeys.
No, that's not it. We dislike the Frence currently because of their behaviour re: Iraq. Key politicians were taking bribes from the horrid Saddam, while lecturing the US diplomats about morality - that makes them absurd posers.
I think your defense of the French is rather selective.
Well I'm not the person you wrote this to, but just because one approves or disaproves of a single act doesn't mean that there is a single description that can encapsulate an entire people. "Selective = Intellegent". Only non-thinking idiots think you can correctly call out a whole nation based on a single act. Call 'em as you see 'em. France has done both great things and stupid things in the 20th century.
The Japanese are mining the oceans of every fish they can harvest with no care at all for the future.
This has nothing to do with France's actions RE: Greenpeace circa 1985.
Look at a sushi menu and half the sashimi is no longer available. You're lucky if you can get red toro, torigai or mai mai.
I prefer a nice t-bone anyway. If this bugs you STOP EATING FISH !! It's only the appetites of people like you that lead fishermen to fish. Based on your detailed knowledge of weird Jap fish dishes like sashimi and sushi I take you are a big time fish eater -- and therefore a huge part of the FISH KILLING problem. Stop now !!
In my book, raw fish = Bait.
Whaling vessels should be armed
I knew a guy who owned a crab boat that fished off the Queen Charlotte Islands and Alaska. He was a big native guy and he ate raw fish out of bait pail so he didn't have to heave to and make lunch.
Raw salmon cheeks, they's some good eatin'
Whales should be armed.
As for the susi, I haven't heard of any of those things and I eat susi all the time. I guess it is no longer available to me because you ate it all up! Hypocrite.
I knew I was doing something wrong
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