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Subject: Japan lodges 'stern' complaint with New Zealand over Sea Shepherd's anti-whaling activities
Volkodav    1/7/2010 1:51:01 AM
Peter Alford From: The Australian January 07, 2010 2:51PM Japan today lodged a "stern" official complaint with New Zealand over the Southern Ocean collision between a Japanese whaling ship and a Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessel. The Japanese government is calling for Australia and New Zealand to curb Sea Shepherd’s Antarctic activities, while officials here deny claims Shonan Maru No. 2 deliberately rammed Sea Shepherd’s Ady Gil. “We lodged a complaint with the New Zealand government in a stern manner because the vessel is registered in New Zealand, and have strongly asked it not to repeat such an incident in the future,'' Chief Cabinet Secretary Hirofumi Hirano said today. Describing the collision between Sea Shepherd's Ady Gil and the whaling fleet security vessel Shonan Maru No. 2 as “extremely regrettable”, the Japan Fisheries Agency called for unspecified “appropriate measures” from the two countries. Australia allows port facilities to Sea Shepherd flagship Steve Irwin and Ady Gil is New Zealand-registered. Acting Prime Minister Julia Gillard said she had seen the incident, in which the lightweight vessel had its bow sheared off, on video and had called on the Australian Maritime Safety Authority to investigate. “It deeply concerns me. Lives are at risk. It seems miraculous that lives were not lost,” Ms Gillard said in Adelaide. However, she said the government would not send the customs vessel, the Oceanic Viking, to the region. The vessel was sent to the region two years ago to observe and “it did not influence behaviour”. Earlier today, an international law expert at the Australian National University, Professor Donald Rothwell, told The Australian Online that Australia should send the Oceanic Viking to monitor the clashes between whalers and the anti-whaling vessels, which were operating “at the very limit and edge of the law”. Last night, the operator of the so-called scientific whaling program, the Institute of Cetacean Research, accused Australian authorities of neglecting its international obligation to curb Sea Shepherd's hazardous operations. “Following last December attacks, Australia, the de facto home port country to the Steve Irwin, neglected to take appropriate and objective actions when the activists' vessel briefly made port call in Hobart,” the Institute of Cetacean Research said in a statement. As the incident today attracted rare front page treatment of a subject usually downplayed by Japanese news outlets, senior Opposition MP Shigeru Ishiba called for international criminal action against Sea Shepherd vessels. “Sea Shepherd should be considered in the same way as pirates so that we can arrest them in international waters,” the former defence and agriculture minister said. Last year, while Mr Ishiba's party was still in office and he was minister responsible for whaling, the government considered seeking Sea Shepherd's declaration as a piracy group but did not act. A Fisheries Agency official said today investigations of the collision were continuing and all facts were not yet available but he denied that it had been caused by the Japanese vessel. He said a video taken from the Shonan Maru No. 2 proved the whalers' claim that Ady Gil had sped into the path of the larger vessel. However the video published on the ICR website appears to support Sea Shepherd's claim the security vessel veered onto a collision course with Ady Gil which, at the time, was moving only slowly. with agencies __________________________________________________________________ The thing I find interesting is Japan does not recognise our authority to tell them to stop whaling in the Southern Ocean yet they critise us for not using our authority over the Souther Ocean to prosecute the protesters for interfering with the whaling we don't want to be happening in the first place. They either recognise our authority or they don't, but I do not appreciate my country being dictated to by a corporation masquerading and a government research agency.
 
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SCisback       1/7/2010 2:12:55 AM


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The thing I find interesting is Japan does not recognise our authority to tell them to stop whaling in the Southern Ocean yet they critise us for not using our authority over the Souther Ocean to prosecute the protesters for interfering with the whaling we don't want to be happening in the first place.

They either recognise our authority or they don't, but I do not appreciate my country being dictated to by a corporation masquerading and a government research agency.

Well they don't recognise our authority to tell them to stop because we do not have authority to tell them to stop. I'm not saying I like whaling, far from it, but fantasising and lying to ourselves about our legal powers in this regard does nobody any favours.

And they are 100% correct, a full investigation should happen and these incompetant and dangerous protestors be roasted for their actions, they have no place on the seas.
The Japanese vessel is under fire in the media for what was clearly the majority fault of the Ady Gil, and they should have the benefit of an investigation to officially acknowledge that the Sea Shephards are a dangerous bunch who should be kept off the oceans.
 
 
 
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Volkodav       1/7/2010 2:37:52 AM
The whalers can't have it both ways, if we don't have the authority to stop them whaling we don't have the authority to stop the protesters protesting.
 
Having watched both the whalers and the protesters released videos, what I saw was the whaler suppressing the stationary protester with their bow water cannon, fair enough, but then turning in towards the suppressed vessel and ramming the much smaller craft before turning away while continuing to suppress the now disabled vessel with their starboard water cannon.  This was at best very poor seamanship at worst attempted murder.
 
Just because someone is annoying or inconveniencing you doesn't give you the right to try to kill them.
 
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Aussiegunneragain       1/7/2010 2:52:01 AM
I personally don't give a shit what the Japanese or any legal academic thinks about what the Australian Government should or shouldn't do about Sea Shepherd. As far as I'm concerned hunting an intelligent animal that is to big to be killed humanely, when it isn't even an important food source for most Japanese nowdays, is a crime against all decency. If a few whalers are inconvenienced and the Japanese Government internationally embarressed by the Sea Shepherd's activities then so be it, we should just stay out of it.
 
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StevoJH       1/7/2010 8:32:13 AM
After watching the video, I suggest you look at the wake of the Adi Gil or whatever its called, it accelerates into the path of the Whaler. Havent seen any video's showing the wake of the whaler, so can't make a real judgement on changes of heading for them. Just remember that Camera angles can be deceiving.
 
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Volkodav       1/7/2010 9:30:50 AM
I believe sea shepard are claiming their craft was stationary and then attempted to to go full astern to avoid the collision.  Its hard to determine what is happening from the whalers footage but the video from the other protest vessel appears to show the whaler turning starboard into the protest craft and then to the port as they collided.  Looking at the layout of the whaler I don't know that they had line of sight to the protest vessel from the bridge so it may well have been accidental.  Infact thinking on it the logical path for the whaler to avoid a collision with a smaller, faster vessel would be to pass behind it.
 
Either way things are out of hand and it is probably time to get some sort of surveilance down there to help settle things down.
 
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albywan       1/7/2010 6:21:23 PM
complaining to the NZ govt isn't going to do much - the RNZN has little ability to play cop in the southern oceans...
 
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Photon       1/7/2010 11:11:47 PM
My personal solution would be to round up both whalers and anti-whaling activists, have them stand on the planks, then pop bullets into the backs of their heads.  (Dump their bodies into the depths of the Southern Ocean once they have been neutralized.)  Afterwards, have warships patrol the Southern Ocean, with diplomatic warning sent to Japan:  No whaling and no fishing, without explicit authorization.  Noncompliance may result in active naval operations against Japanese vessels in this area.  Over and out.
 
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DropBear       1/7/2010 11:46:09 PM
I wish the SeaShepard folk hadn't used the ex-Earthrace vessel in this manner. An amazing vessel and only one of its kind now sitting on the sea floor. What an absolute waste of a remarkable craft. Pitty.
 
 
 
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Aussiegunneragain       1/8/2010 1:39:34 AM

My personal solution would be to round up both whalers and anti-whaling activists, have them stand on the planks, then pop bullets into the backs of their heads.  (Dump their bodies into the depths of the Southern Ocean once they have been neutralized.)  Afterwards, have warships patrol the Southern Ocean, with diplomatic warning sent to Japan:  No whaling and no fishing, without explicit authorization.  Noncompliance may result in active naval operations against Japanese vessels in this area.  Over and out.

They have the best navy in the Asia Pacific region save the US, they would kick our arses and we would lose our biggest trading partner as well. Sound smart?
 
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bartrat       1/8/2010 10:56:35 AM

My personal solution would be to round up both whalers and anti-whaling activists, have them stand on the planks, then pop bullets into the backs of their heads.  (Dump their bodies into the depths of the Southern Ocean once they have been neutralized.)  Afterwards, have warships patrol the Southern Ocean, with diplomatic warning sent to Japan:  No whaling and no fishing, without explicit authorization.  Noncompliance may result in active naval operations against Japanese vessels in this area.  Over and out.
Above would not work (illegal). Treaties protect whaling as the Japanese do it. Sorry it is fact. I do not like whaling at all. But after watching "Whales Wars" on Animal Planet cable TV channel last year, I saw the Sea Shepard do some very crazy and questionable things. I suggest you watch some of those episodes and you may not like the Sea Shepard people as much (remember I do not like whaling, but they are NOT helping to stop the way they are doing it).
 
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