Whaling’s floating foe retires – for now
Sea Shepherd admits it’s losing to technology
It’s a whimper of an ending to one of the most visible, controversial and arguably effective challenges to Japanese whaling in international waters.
Sea Shepherd — the marine wildlife conservation group that has hounded whalers since 2005 — has announced it won’t be launching any boats this season.
The technology used by the whale- hunting Institute of Cetacean Research — which environmental groups contend is nothing but a front for government-backed commercial whaling — simply can’t be beaten, says Sea Shepherd co- founder and captain Paul Watson.
“We have to refocus and find a way to compete with them technologically and strategically,” the Canadian activist said in a phone interview from New York City.
Watson blames the Japanese government for giving the research institute access to satellite imagery. That means the Sea Shepherd can’t keep up, and the main whaling vessel, the Nisshin Maru, can complete its hunt before activists intervene.
Under those conditions, Watson said, it just “doesn’t make sense to return” to the whale hunt right now, but “we will return once we find we are able to match them.”
In the past, Sea Shepherd and a fleet of boats including the Bob Barker — named for the animal rights’ activist and Price Is Right TV host — used guerrilla tactics to stop the Japanese whalers. Sometimes ramming t he vessels, t hey blocked them from hauling up kills or refuelling at times.
In return, the Institute of Cetacean Research calls them criminals and terrorists. In an earlier battle, the institute outmanoeuvred the activists in court over Whale Wars, a reality TV show that took the Sea Shepherd’s fight to the small screen. The Animal Planet channel dropped the show.
In a statement, Sea Shep- herd insisted while there are no immediate plans to restart physical efforts to prevent the hunt, it will “never abandon the whales.”
Watson said he does yet know how the battle will continue, exactly. Maybe by getting access to a satellite so the activists can match the Japanese intelligence. But he says they are currently outgunned, and outmanoeuvred politically as Australian and New Zealand officials often search their vessels or delay their volunteers from getting to missions.
A controversial figure for his role in Sea Shepherd’s sometimes extreme tactics, Watson has a colourful history. He has been called a vigilante and stared down international warrants for his arrest. An ex- Sea Shepherd vessel notoriously rotted in a Nova Scotia harbour and he hid out in France, for a time, when his activities got him into legal hot water.
Today, the activist takes heart in the awareness Sea Shepherd has raised, claiming there are 6,500 whales — mostly Minke but also humpback and other breeds — alive today thanks to its efforts.
“We have accomplished a lot” in those 12 years, he said.
For one, t he Institute of Cetacean Research has cut its quota since 2005, at least partly in response to an international court ruling but also perhaps in response to public pressure. This year, the institute will seek to kill over 300 whales, about a third of the 1,000 or more it was averaging before Sea Shepherd’s combative activism.
For now, t he environmental group will continue its efforts in other parts of the world, combating illegal shark hunting for fins usually headed to China, and damage allegedly caused by some fish farms off B.C.
Says Watson: “We can’t really spend a quarter of our budget every year on the Southern Oceans if we can’t make a difference.”