Seashephard - Operation No Compromise!

[Guest guest]

Operation No Compromise:

Defending the Integrity of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

 

Defending the Sanctuary

Sea

Shepherd ships and crew will return to the Southern Ocean in December 2010 to

once again intervene against illegal Japanese whaling activities in the

Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.

“The

Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary is an internationally established whale

sanctuary as in S-A-N-C-T-U-A-R-Y,” said Captain Paul Watson. “Just

what is it about this word ‘sanctuary’ that people don’t

understand. Sanctuary means no killing, it means protection, it means refuge,

it means asylum, and we intend to protect the whales within the sanctuary with

all the resources available to us.”

The Sea

Shepherd Conservation Society is not interested in any compromise deal with

Japan that will legalize the slaughter of whales in the Southern Ocean. Giving

the whalers a kill quota will not make it legal because you cannot legalize a

kill quota in an established whale sanctuary. You cannot legalize commercial

whaling in the waters south of sixty degrees without violating the Antarctic

Treaty that prohibits commercial activity in the waters around the continent of

Antarctic. The only way to legalize commercial whaling in the Southern

Ocean is to dismantle the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary and to negate the

Antarctic Treaty.

Sea

Shepherd ships will return to the Southern Ocean Sanctuary unless a kill quota

of zero whale kills is established.

“The

killing of even one whale is a violation of international conservation

law,” said Captain Paul Watson. “In addition to protecting the

lives of individual whales we are also defending the integrity of the Southern

Ocean Whale Sanctuary. Whaling ships from Japan or anywhere else have no legal

right to kill whales within the Sanctuary.”

The Sea

Shepherd Conservation Society rejects the compromise being brokered by nations

like New Zealand and the United States with Japan.

“I

am amazed that these nations are negotiating with poachers,” said Captain

Watson. “They don’t negotiate with elephant poachers, shark

finners, and drug traffickers, so why do the Japanese whalers get special

consideration? The answer of course is that Japan is an economic power and

makes demands backed up by economic pressure.”

The Sea

Shepherd Conservation Society is recruiting volunteers willing to board whaling

ships in Antarctic waters, volunteers willing to risk their lives and freedom

to defend the whales. Punishing Captain Peter Bethune for boarding the whaling

ship that rammed and sunk our vessel the Ady Gil will not

deter Sea Shepherd. Sea Shepherd already has a dozen volunteers willing to be

taken as prisoners back to Japan if need be next season.

The

campaign next December will be the 7th campaign by Sea Shepherd to intervene

against the poaching of whales by the Japanese fleet in the Antarctic Whale

Sanctuary.

Sea

Shepherd’s next campaign will be called Operation No Compromise in

recognition of our rejection of the compromise deal on the table before the

International Whaling Commission.

“If

they push compromise, we will answer with confrontation,” Captain Watson

said from Colorado Springs, Colorado where he is giving a lecture to Colorado

College. “New Zealand claims that the compromise will cut the kill

quota in the Southern Ocean in half. We have already cut it in half so the

compromise will achieve nothing additional. We’re not satisfied with

half, we want 100% protection, nothing less. If the compromise cuts the quota

in half than we will return to cut the reduced quota in half, or more than

half. We will not quit the sanctuary until the last harpoon is retired.”

The Whale

Wars third season will air on June 4th in the

U.S. on Animal Planet.

There will

be no surrender and no retreat by Sea Shepherd, it will be No Compromise until

we drive the Japanese whaling fleet from the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary

– forever!

http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-100423-1.html