Major Victory: Japanese whalers suspend Antarctic hunt
Watson fan | 16.02.2011 10:47 | Ocean Defence
Japanese whalers have suspended their Antarctic hunt, citing harassment by environmentalists, and are considering ending their annual mission early, a fisheries agency official says.
Activists from group the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society have pursued and harassed the Japanese fleet for months to stop its harpoon ships from killing the sea mammals.
"[The factory ship] the Nisshin Maru, which has been chased by Sea Shepherd, has suspended operations since February 10 so as to ensure the safety [of the crew]," Japanese Fisheries Agency official Tatsuya Nakaoku said.
"We are now studying the situation, including the possibility of cutting the mission early," he told Agence France-Presse in Tokyo, confirming media reports, but stressing that "nothing has been decided at this point".
Anti-whaling activists have cautiously welcomed the news. "If that's true then it demonstrates that our tactics, our strategies have been successful," Sea Shepherd captain Paul Watson said, after being told of the suspension.
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Paul Watson is absolutely correct and Sea Shepherd’s strategy has been proved to be correct. Compare this with Greenpeace which has assiduously avoided getting involved in the confrontation for fear of retribution by the Japanese authorities. Instead, Greenpeace has pretended to its supporters that it is engaging in anti-whaling activities but has made its three boats are well away from the immediate area.
"[The factory ship] the Nisshin Maru, which has been chased by Sea Shepherd, has suspended operations since February 10 so as to ensure the safety [of the crew]," Japanese Fisheries Agency official Tatsuya Nakaoku said.
"We are now studying the situation, including the possibility of cutting the mission early," he told Agence France-Presse in Tokyo, confirming media reports, but stressing that "nothing has been decided at this point".
Anti-whaling activists have cautiously welcomed the news. "If that's true then it demonstrates that our tactics, our strategies have been successful," Sea Shepherd captain Paul Watson said, after being told of the suspension.
***
Paul Watson is absolutely correct and Sea Shepherd’s strategy has been proved to be correct. Compare this with Greenpeace which has assiduously avoided getting involved in the confrontation for fear of retribution by the Japanese authorities. Instead, Greenpeace has pretended to its supporters that it is engaging in anti-whaling activities but has made its three boats are well away from the immediate area.
Watson fan
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http://www.seashepherd.org/
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I agree
16.02.2011 10:58
Ex-Greenpeace activist
Give credit
16.02.2011 13:37
Greenpeace Japan Secretary General Junichi Sato said: “The Japanese government blames Sea Shepherd for the [possibility of] bringing the fleet home early, but what it actually means is that it has proved incorrect that Japan’s commercial whaling, which Japan calls research whaling, makes business sense and is sustainable”.
So according to Greenpeace, even the Japanese don’t understand why this year’s whaling expedition has been abandoned and it apparently nothing to do with the whaling boats being harassed continually by the three Sea Shepherd vessels.
If you care about whaling it's clear now where your donations should be going!!
Sea Shepherd fan