[0]Why do we love whales so much and why does our heart skip a beat and we scream when we see a whale breach off the Byron Lighthouse. What will it mean to humanity when the powerful Japanese Whaling interest are finally pushed onto their sword by the weight of global public opinion and admit defeat. We will certainly feel richer in spirit as a species that we were able to correct a terrible injustice perpetrated against these majestic beings of the ocean. I have often said if we cant save the whales, the largest and arguably most intelligent species that has ever existed on this planet then what hope is there for humanity.
So we now have a Federal court ruling declaring Japanese whaling in Australian Antarctic waters is illegal and Justice Alsop has granted an injunction against whale hunting in the Australian Antarctic waters within the Southern Ocean whale sanctuary. The problem is, Japan has said they do not recognise Australia's claim on these waters and the Australian Government doesn't want to enforce it.
On Tuesday the 15th of February just hours after the court ruling was handed down, the radical conservation group "Sea Shepherds", flying the Scull and Trident flag, finally caught up with the Japanese whaling fleet they had been chasing for a few days in the Antarctic. News arrived around 11 p.m on the internet that two Sea Shepherd crew, Australian Benjamin Potts and British citizen Giles Lane had just boarded one of the Japanese whaling ship to delivering a letter to the captain. They were assaulted by Japanese whalers nearly throw overboard into the icy water and then tied to the radar mast of the whaling ship for 2 hours in freezing temperatures. Who were the illegal pirates I found myself wondering. Of course this has generated a huge amount of publicity globally about the court ruling and Japans illegal whaling activities. It has also put a lot of pressure on the Labor party to honor its pre-election promise to do all it can to stop whaling and to enforce any court injunction.
The whalers said they would return the hostages if a list of demands were agreed to, one being that Sea Shepherd agreeing to no longer interfere with their whaling operations.
“The Institute of Cetacean Research (Japanese whaling organization) is acting like a terrorist organisation,” said Sea Shepherd, "Steve Irwin’s" 1st Officer Peter Brown. “Here they are taking hostages and making demands. Our policy is that we don’t respond to terrorist demands.”
“The activities of the Japanese whaling fleet are illegal under international conservation law. We are upholding international law. The Japanese are poachers and should be treated in the same manner as elephant or tiger poachers,” said Sea Shepherd Captain Paul Watson an
The Government eventually offered to use the customs ship the Oceanic Viking, that was in the area monitoring and collecting information for a possible international court challenge, to transfer the two Sea Shepherd crew, from the Japanese ship to the Sea Shepherd ship the Steve Irwin
If the Government was serious about stopping the Japanese killing more whales then this was the time to give the Japanese whalers the court injunction by hand then instruct them to leave Australian Antarctic waters, return to Japan and stop all whaling for all time. Instead Australian customs ship just picked up the two men and transferred them to the Sea Shepherds, "Steve Irwin" ship early Friday morning luring them away from the Japanese whaling ships. The hostage drama lasted for 3 days.
Mr Inwood from the Institute of Cetacean Research says the Yushin Maru II is now headed back towards the rest of the Japanese fleet in the Southern Ocean to resume whaling.
It is unknown how many whales Japan has already killed this season in the Antarctic whale sanctuary or if even Australian Humpbacks have been spared the harpoon. What is known is no whales have been killed in the last week or so while Sea Shepherds and Greenpeace have been chasing and harassing them and while the whole world has been watching. They plan to continue their protest.
Many people have asked me why does Japan still kill whales especially when they have 6000 tones of frozen whale meat in Japan they cant get rid of and they even use it in pet food and try to give it away in school lunches. When I have asked the same question I have heard that the fishing industry and lobby in Japan is very powerful and even controls the Prime Minister. A few of these men like to eat whale meat and don't like to be told they cant. I've also heard that some samurai warriors were told to stop decapitating people after the second world war. They were told by the Americans to go and kill whales instead and eat them. It appears some took there frustrations and warrior instincts out on these defenceless gentle giants of the deep. They went to the Antarctic and virtually wiped out many species of whales including the Blue, Fin and Humpback whales. It is these people and the politicians, businesses and fisherman that support them that are now bringing the Japanese nation into global disrepute and shame. Now after clawing their way back from extinction they want to kill whales again for so called "Scientific Research". If they had no disruptions this season they intended to kill 900 Minke whales 50 Fin whales and 50 humpback whales. Although we forced the Japanese to say they would not kill humpbacks this season they have said they will start killing them again as early as December 2008.
As Sea Shepherds and Greenpeace do battle with the out of control Japanese whaling fleet in our Southern oceans it is our relationship and for many, their friendship for this majestic leviaton that is tipping the balance. From school kids doing whale drawings, to activists doing protests, to politicians representing community feelings, consciousness change and action on this issue has come. Like the Franklin Dam and Terania creek protests of the 70s expressed and showed us that nature was worth defending, we are now taking on one of the most powerful economic forces on the planet and like Malcolm Frazer, Japan too will fall to right thought and action.
Some say, it is only International courts that will stop Japanese whalers, others say diplomatic pressure, boycotts of Japanese products or the International Whaling Commission that will stop them. Personally I follow the Gandhian style of achieving change that incorporates many aspects which include education, networking, positive visualisations, people power, direct non-violent action, media, boycotts, courts, politics and negotiations. All these activities have been used in this campaign to end whaling by a broad cross section of the community and no single action was ever going to succeed by itself. So congratulations to everyone who has played a part in this process. But its not over yet.
To assist in non- violently burying the sword people are invited to a screening of an inspiring whale action film I have made plus some recent Antarctic action footage and to plan for a Boycott Japanese products demonstration in Brisbane on Friday 25th. The gathering starts at 7 pm Thursday the 24th in Mullumbimby at Pioneer Hall in Gordon St, behind the civic centre followed by devotional singing with Kevin James. Entry by donation. If anyone wants to come to the protest email djefferys@aapt.net.au [1]. I am organising a mini bus and need to know numbers.
For more info and whale action updates see http://www.seashepherd.org [2]
Thanks to the visionaries to who have given some financial support to the whale campaign I have been working on. Jillian Watt, Lightforce computers, Dr Didge Apana, Broken Head Quarry, Crystal Castle, M K G, Dougal May, Happy High Herbs, Julie Wall, Santos, Cr Peter Westhimer, Kim Kindersly and others.
Foot note
Dean Jefferys is founder of the Byron Whale action Group and Save the whale inc. To get more up to date information, see whale clips, contact Dean, get lobby contacts, donate to Save the whale inc, or join Deans whale email list go to http://www.flightofthehumpback.org [3]. Deans other sites include
http://www.myspace.com/deanjefferys [4]
http://www.youtube.com/shaman1958 [5]
http://www.youtube.com/flightofthehumpback [6]
http://www.shamansoftheamazon.com [7]