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Confessions of a Modern Southern Oceans Pirate important! [article added :: 21-01-2008] Release date: 19-01-2008 Source: By Captain Paul Watson “Yes I am a pirate, 200 years too late, The cannons don’t’ thunder, there’s nothing to plunder I’m an over forty victim of fate.” - Jimmy Buffet By Captain Paul Watson Eco-buccaneer and Green Corsair Shiver me timbers boys and girls, we is awash in a sea of pirates down here in the Great Southern Ocean and it’s time for a parley to do a little ‘splaining on the subject. The Southern Ocean now rivals the 17th Century Caribbean for the reported acts of piracy during the last two weeks. The only thing lacking is Sea Shepherd member Orlando Bloom. The Japanese whalers are accusing Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace crewmembers of being pirates. Sea Shepherd and Greenpeace are accusing the whalers of being pirates. The whalers and Greenpeace are accusing Sea Shepherd of being pirates. The Japanese government is throwing the word piracy about as freely as the Governor of Jamaica once did a few hundred years ago. Forget about going to Disneyland to see Pirates of the Caribbean. We now have the new, improved Pirates of the Southern Oceans. No one has actually sunk any ships, looted any cargos, kidnapped any damsels (just a couple of blokes), or forced anyone to walk the plank - yet, but listening to the hysterical rhetoric, the public can be forgiven from thinking these activities are ravaging the Southern Main. My ship the Steve Irwin does fly a modern version of the “pretty red” or “jolie rouge,” the original name of the banner that evolved years ago into the black and white skull and crossbones which came to be known as the Jolly Roger. We decided years ago that if people were going to be landlubber silly and call us pirates we would adopt our own Jolly Roger. Thus we designed the crossed Neptune Trident and Shepherd’s staff with the skull. Set in the skull are a whale and dolphin in a yin yang design. As soon as we hoisted that black flag, kids from around the world began to write us in support. Our Jolly Roger hats and shirts have become our most popular merchandise. They can be found in the nearest Quicksilver store near any surfing beach. Why? Because there is a romance to piracy that is separate from the reality of piracy. Some pirates were great and noble heroes and some were dastardly evil villains. It’s all a matter of perspective. If you love whales we be heroes, but if you eat whales then we be pirates. Back in the 17th Century it was not the British Navy that shut down piracy in the Caribbean. They and the British politicians were not interested. Oh, they talked big about going after the pirates but it was, as it is now - all talk. Captain Horatio Nelson was actually sued by some British merchants for attempting to shut down piracy. There was simply too much money in the form of bribery, collusion and fenced property to motivate more than an appearance of addressing the problem. Piracy was finally shut down on the Spanish Main by the pirate Sir Henry Morgan. It took a pirate to end piracy. His reward was that he was appointed Governor of Jamaica where he was able to pilfer more booty through politics than he ever did from the deck of a ship. There are pirates of profit like the Japanese, pirates of opportunity like the politicians, and pirates of compassion like Sea Shepherd. It is a little difficult to cast Sea Shepherd unpaid volunteers selflessly trying to save the lives of whales as ruthless pirates. On the other hand, the Japanese whalers are illegally stealing and killing whales from a Sanctuary for whales and from the territory that is supposed to be under the sovereignty of Australia. The whalers have also taken hostages demanding conditions for their return. Which brings us to the motivation of those pirates in Canberra? What is in it for them that they consistently refuse to protect Australian territory from illegal foreign exploitation? The answer is the same for Australian politicians today as it was for British politicians in 1650 - there’s money to be made, under the table, and through the back door, trade agreements to consider and after all, some pirates especially the Japanese, have good public relations firms and powerful financial backing. So, we have Australia condemning the Japanese pirates and doing very little to stop their ruthless plundering of the whales from the Australian Antarctic Territorial waters. But piracy has a long list of renowned and admirable practitioners. It was the pirate captain John Paul Jones who founded both the navies of the United States and Russia. It was the pirate Jean LaFitte who stood with General Andrew Jackson in defense of New Orleans. It was the pirates Sir Francis Drake and Sir Walther Raleigh who were knighted by Queen Elizabeth I. So, I stand in honorable company as a modern day pirate. I’ve not shot anyone, burned any ships, looted any cargos, kidnapped anyone, nor do I drink rum and carry a parrot on my shoulder for that matter. Well, except for the rum and sinking and ramming a few outlaw whalers, everything else is true. We are also pirates with a sense of humour and a moral code of non-violence. In thirty years of eco-piracy we have never injured a single poacher although we’ve sent 9 whalers to the bottom. Instead of cannon balls, our guns shoot coconut cream and chocolate pie filling. We toss stink bombs instead of grenades and we are so non-violent we don’t even eat meat or fish on our ships. No fish, fowl or mammal have died in the making of our high seas campaigns. What we do is defend the whales from the illegal slaughter by ruthless and merciless killers of whales. If people want to call us pirates for that, than blow me down buckos, we’re damn proud to be damn pirates. Savvy? Yo ho me hearties we have whales to save and Japanese ships to attack! Captain Paul Watson Master - The Steve Irwin Master - The Farley Mowat Founder and President of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. More info: > The SeaShepherd > Email the Captain

Blood Monday important! [article added :: 30-10-2007] Release date: 29-10-2007 Source: Dave Rastovich, Hayden Panettiere and Other Real-Life Heroes Make A Daring Pre-dawn Mission Back to Japanese Dolphin Killing Cove TOKYO- Less than 24 hours after professional surfer Dave Rastovich led an international group of over 30 surfers, celebrities, and musicians on a peaceful paddle-out ceremony to honor the more than 25,000 dolphins killed each year in Japan, fishermen in the tiny village of Taiji resumed the slaughter that had been delayed by the increased worldwide media attention. In response, the surfers decided in solidarity to make a pre-dawn return to the killing cove to recreate the ceremony, albeit with fewer people to evade detection. Rastovich and the others paddled within a stone’s throw of a pod of captive pilot whales and their calves that had been herded into the cove for early morning slaughter. “The reason we surfers were there was to share the blood-stained waters at eye-level with our ocean kin awaiting their execution,” said a dripping, visibly shaken Rastovich just after paddling in. “Despite the fishermen taking great pains to hide their acts of cruelty, we seized an opportunity to bring this travesty to the world’s attention.” Taiji-area fishermen, who kill dolphins and whales for their meat, netted off the bay and constructed green tarps to shield the slaughter from prying eyes and front-line cetacean activists bent on shutting down the dolphin trade forever. When the surfers learned of the imminent slaughter, they did not hesitate to return despite the distinct possibility of violent resistance and police arrest. Rastovich and his core team of surfers trailed by camera crews arrived at the infamous Taiji cove to paddle out to the captured pilot whales. After entering the water they quickly arrived alongside the whales who swam back and forth along the edge of the seaward net. The six paddlers, including Rastovich, his wife mermaid model Hannah Fraser, Heroes TV star Hayden Panettiere, Australian actress Isabel Lucas, author Peter Heller and professional surfer Karina Petroni, formed a traditional surfers’ memorial circle situated between the whales and the blood-ridden shallows. Local fishermen converged almost immediately, harassing the paddlers with yelled threats and advancing on them with whirling propeller blades. The irate fishermen, who yelled “Why are you here? Go Home!” then used a long wooden pole to attack and intimidate the surfers. “Even though the fishermen used force to try and break us up we held our peaceful stance. The feeling in the circle was of incredible strength” said mermaid model Hannah Fraser. With tensions escalating and the police sirens growing, the surfers quickly paddled back to shore where a distraught Hayden Panettiere fell to her knees sobbing, overwhelmed by the carnage she and the group had just witnessed. “I couldn’t believe how red the water was,” said Panettiere. “The whales were so scared. Hopefully their deaths won’t be in vain.” After hightailing it out of Taiji, 30 policemen readied with a paddy wagon stopped the three-van convoy at the border of the Wakayama prefecture. After politely checking passports and questioning the group intently, the police waved the crew on their way. Rastovich expressed extreme sorrow, saying “With many nets and kill boats waiting beyond the cove, the fishermen’s intense desire to kill left no room for escape.” Reflecting on the day’s experience, a somber Isabel Lucas expressed that the worst part was that the whales are probably all dead by now. “We couldn’t save these whales but hopefully shining the light on their deaths will save others.” More info: > Save the Whales Again > Save Japan Dolphins > Minds In the Water Visual Petition

RASTA TAKES AIM AT POACHERS: important! [article added :: 18-09-2007] Release date: 12-09-2007 Source: Surfer Magazine - September Issue RASTA TAKES AIM AT POACHERS: HEADS TO ALASKA TO CONFRONT INTERNATIONAL WHALING COMMISION. by Steve Barilotti Earlier this year SURFER reported on Dave Rastovich's quest to activate the surfing community to join the fight to save dolphins and whales from illegal commercial slaughter (see "Pirates of Compassion" March 2007). Since then, Rasta has co-founded the grassroots advocacy group Surfers for Cetaceans, and after getting a host of high-profile surfers pledging their support, he passed on a combination of Southern Hemisphere swells to head up on a fact-finding mission to Anchorage, Alaska, the site of the 59th annual International Whaling Commision (IWC) hearings. As we reported back in March, much of Rasta's inspiration for rallying the surf community stems from a meeting he had with Paul Watson, founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society and one of Rasta's personal heroes. "His book, Ocean Warrior, changed my life," said Rasta. Watson, a renowned defender of whales and dolphins, is best known for confronting and even disabling lawbreakers on the high seas. He's even gone as far as sinking illegal whaling fleets in harbor. More info: > Surfer Magazine

Taiji officials: Dolphin meat 'toxic waste' important! [article added :: 18-09-2007] Release date: 08-02-2007 Source: The Japan Times 08/02/2007 Assembly pair break taboo, warn of acute mercury risk in school lunches By BOYD HARNELL Special to The Japan Times For what is believed to be the first time anywhere in Japan, elected officials have openly condemned the consumption of dolphin meat, especially in school lunches, on grounds that it is dangerously contaminated with mercury. In an exclusive interview with The Japan Times held in Kii Katsuura, Wakayama Prefecture, on July 19, Assemblymen Junichiro Yamashita, 59, and Hisato Ryono, 51, from the nearby whaling city of Taiji said they had found extremely high mercury and methylmercury levels in samples of meat from pilot whales killed inshore by Taiji hunters and put on sale in that locality. The pilot whale, or "gondo" (Globicephala macrorhynchus), is the largest of the dolphin family of small cetaceans. This species is among some 2,300 dolphins slaughtered annually in Taiji, after the mammals are herded in "drive fisheries" into small coves, where they are speared and hacked to death. Similar hunts elsewhere in Japan are estimated to account for at least another 20,000 small cetaceans annually. The Taiji assemblymen, who are both independents, also condemned the growing practice of feeding this meat to children in their school lunches — describing it as no less than "toxic waste." The random samples tested by the two assemblymen were bought at supermarkets in Taiji and nearby Shingu, and were similarly sourced to the meat served to children in whale-meat lunches at Taiji schools. Such lunches may also have been served in schools in other prefectures, the Taiji officials said. Yamashita and Ryono defied the code of silence traditionally shrouding sensitive issues, especially one that could threaten the economy of their small, isolated fishing town on the scenic Kii Peninsula. Asked why, they said local people were getting very anxious about food safety in Japan. Recent reports of contaminated products from China have heightened their concerns, they said. Yamashita explained, "We're not against traditional whaling, but we heard claims that pilot whales are poisoned with mercury, and we discovered that some of this meat from a (drive fishery) was fed to kids in school lunches." He said that although they had doubted the pilot whales were contaminated with mercury, they decided to have certified lab tests carried out nonetheless. "We tested some samples — purchased at the Gyokyo supermarket in Taiji and Super Center Okuwa in the nearby city of Shingu," Yamashita said, adding they were "shocked" by the results. One dolphin sample had a mercury content 10 times above the health ministry's advisory level of 0.4 parts per million, with a methylmercury readout 10.33 times over the ministry's own advisory level of 0.3 ppm. Another dolphin sample tested 15.97 times and 12 times above advisory levels of total mercury and methylmercury, respectively. The results prompted the two officials to describe dolphin meat as "toxic waste." In fact, the dolphin levels were higher than some of the mercury-tainted seafood tested during the tragic Minamata mercurypollution disaster of the 1950s, according to Dr. Shigeo Ekino of Kumamoto Medical Science University in Kyushu. In that episode, thousands were sickened, disabled or died in the toxic chemical disaster. Ekino is famous for his breakthrough study of brain specimens from deceased Minamata disease victims that reveals how even low levels of methylmercury can damage or destroy neurons. After they received the test results, the Taiji lawmakers, anxious about the possible toxic effects of pilot-whale meat consumed by local schoolchildren, quickly contacted Masahiko Tamaki, an official of the Wakayama pre-fectural health section, and showed him the test results from their samples. Yamashita said, "He (Tamaki) seems to think he has to do something, but doesn't know how to do it." Tamaki was hesitant to confront the mercury issue due to possible repercussions, and offered no solutions, Yamashita said, adding, "The Wakayama health section simply told me they didn't want to upset Taiji people." But Yamashita said: "According to the high mercury result, if they continue, the people will be harmed — this harm, spread through school lunches, is terrible because children will be forced to eat mercury-tainted dolphin." Despite the Taiji pair's urgent health concerns, however, Taiji Mayor Kazutaka Sangen plans to build a new slaughterhouse for processing meat from pilot whales and other dolphins caught during globally condemned drive fisheries there. He also wants to expand the provision of school lunches containing pilot whale meat. Ryono said, "We may not be able to prevent the building of a new slaughterhouse, but we will continue to appeal to Taiji people not to use dolphin for school lunches." Meanwhile, concern over 12 dolphins currently in "capture pens" in Taiji is mounting as the mammals await imminent shipment to a dolphin aquarium in the Dominican Republic. This has prompted Yamashita and Ryono to write an urgent letter to Max Puig, environmental minister of the Dominican Republic, protesting importation of the dolphins, saying his environmentally friendly island state would be accepting "toxic waste." Top researchers in Japan's medical community have also voiced concern about the high levels of mercury found in small-cetacean food products. Ekino told The Japan Times: "Everyone should avoid eating dolphin meat. If people continue to eat dolphin, there's a high probability of them having damage to their brains. . . . No government agency is studying the problem — no scientists in Japan want to study the subject; it's very political." Award-winning U.S. neurologist David Perlmutter echoed Ekino's sentiments in a telephone interview, saying, "I totally agree with Dr. Ekino when he said everyone should avoid eating dolphin meat — the consumption of dolphin meat is a profound health risk for humans." Referring to Japan's health advisories warning pregnant women that consuming dolphin meat "can be harmful to the fetus and to young children," Perlmutter, who has a private practice at his clinic in Naples, Fla., said, "If it's a risk for pregnant women and children, why is it safe for anyone else?" Tetsuya Endo, a professor and researcher at Hokkaido Health Science University's faculty of pharmaceutical sciences, affirmed the other doctors' condemnation of small-cetacean food products. In a terse e-mail sent to this correspondent, Endo said, in reference to dolphin meat, "It's not food!" In 2005, Endo published the results of a three-year study on random samples of cetacean food products sold throughout Japan, and concluded all of it was unhealthy because of high levels of mercury and methylmercury. However, Hideki Moronuki, deputy director of the government's Far Seas Fisheries Division of the Resources Management Department, in an interview with The Japan Times, maligned Endo's study, calling it "misleading information." When pressed, though, he failed to substantiate his accusation. Endo, however, responded to The Japan Times in an e-mail, saying, "If he (Moronuki) has any basis for his comments, he has the responsibility to show it because it is deeply related to human health." Moronuki was specifically asked if there was a mercury problem with dolphins. His response: "No." He acknowledged that doctors' reports (of high mercury levels) may be correct, but claimed, "I don't think it causes a problem with consumers." When asked if he thought consuming dolphin meat was dangerous, he said, "No." But he conceded that eating too much dolphin meat could be "dangerous." Moronuki was also asked if he felt responsible for the poisoning of his own people. He replied: "No. I am responsible for the management of the dolphin fishery, that's it." This bureaucrat's attitude flies in the face of certified copies of six test reports commissioned and paid for over the past year, each showing high mercury levels in the meat put on sale from all dolphin species tested. That data have been made freely available by The Japan Times to the appropriate Japanese government agencies and officials. Despite this hard data, government authorities have consistently displayed a sense of apathy toward these matters, and what many informed commentators regard as dangerously cavalier attitudes in dealing with urgent health issues affecting their citizens. Makoto Tanaka, assistant director of the health ministry's inspection and safety division in the Food Safety Department, would only say that he is seeking an international standard for establishing a new advisory level for consumers of mercury-tainted food products. The health ministry has been aware of the mercury problem in small cetaceans (not to mention in the meat from great whales) for many cetaceans (not to mention in the meat from great whales) for many years, but so far it has refused to ban the sale of such food products. In particular — despite unequivocal scientific test results — it has failed to require the posting of warning labels for consumers of dolphin meat. This approach continues despite an advisory order, Kan Nyu Dai 99 Ban, established July 23, 1973, under which a warning was issued to prefectural and local governments by the then director of the environmental and health agency, stating that mercury in seafood must not exceed the advisory level of 0.4 ppm. Although still in effect, enforcement of the advisory order by governors and mayors has been lax and unchallenged. But the reaction around the killing coves of Taiji was swift in confronting the two assemblymen's health concerns. On the one hand, Gyokyo, the leading local supermarket, pulled pilot whale meat off its shelves, and will not resume its sale, according to Takuya Kondo, assistant director of the health ministry's Department of Food Safety's Standards and Evaluation Division. Kondo said, "The (Taiji) government has to comply with . . . provisional regulations. . . . They are not supposed to sell (dolphin meat) if it is over the advisory level of 0.4 ppm for mercury." Yamashita and Ryono believe many people in Japan are unaware of the (health) problems related to consuming dolphin meat, and they say they want to educate people through an Internet blog currently posted by the Save Japan Dolphins coalition, an international conservation group. But it would be a lot more straightforward if this issue was addressed in a more open and accountable way by officials. Instead, a pervasive sense of paranoia seems to loom over any investigation of the mercury contamination of foodstuff in Japan. On this reporter's initial visit to the test lab, my sample of dolphin meat was at first rejected for testing by lab officials, who greeted me with a file of my articles on the barbaric dolphin slaughter in Taiji, and the toxicity of cetacean meat sold in Japan. One lab official said: "Sometimes happens big problem, I must confirm your purpose. . . . We cannot stand in opposite position of Fishery Agency. . . . If you publish our report, we'll have to close thelab." The lab later conducted the test after learning the test-sample result would determine whether a potentially dangerous public-health hazard existed. Also, during the dolphin drives and the animals' subsequent slaughter in Taiji, I was stalked nonstop by shady-looking characters just a few meters behind me wherever I went. Police also attempted to question me several times and, to my considerable consternation, all seemed to know my name exactly as written on my driver's license — even though only my hotel had a copy of my license. It was very unsettling. Perhaps the two courageous assemblymen may have sounded the final death knell to Japan's dolphin slaughter by focusing the spotlight on the toxic products of this butchery. But how many Japanese may already be adversely affected, so many years after the danger of this cruel trade has been known?

Recent Article Published in the American Chronicle (29.05.07) important! [article added :: 31-05-2007] Release date: 31-05-2007 Source: Greenpeace International Thousands of people in dozens of countries marched today to call for whale protection as the International Whaling Commission (IWC) starts its annual meeting. In Anchorage, venue for the meeting, the march was led by whale campaigners, Hollywood stars and world-renowned surfers. (1) Greenpeace supporters joined ' Heroes' star Hayden Panettiere, MTV host Stephen Colletti, NYPD Blues' Esai Morales of the 'Save the Whales Again' campaign (2), Australian pro surfer Dave Rastovich and artist Howie Cooke, from Surfers for Cetaceans (3) and Teens Against Whaling at the parade, which then transformed into a spectacular 'human whale' aerial art display in the centre of Anchorage, the culmination of a series of art events which began in Mexico last week. (4) 'The fact that so many people across the globe have come together in a common cause is a loud and clear warning to the Commissioners in Alaska that they must not fail the whales.' Greenpeace International Executive Director, Gerd Leipold commented from the Buenos Aires march in Argentina. Caught in nets, hit by ships, choked on plastic bags, poisoned by pollution and starved because of changes in food supply through climate change impacts & hundreds of thousands of whales die every year in the oceans. Over the coming week, IWC delegates from more than seventy nations will spend only a couple of hours discussing these issues and the rest of the four day meeting debating how, where and why to hunt them, whether under the guise of science or simply against the regulations of the Commission. Interested in the IWC Then check out Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America 'With so many other factors impacting whale populations worldwide, it is incredible that the IWC is still entertaining the idea of debating commercial whaling,' said Junichi Sato, Greenpeace whales campaign coordinator in Japan, who is attending the IWC meeting. The IWC delegates need to make a commitment this year to modernize the Commission, seriously address the increasing range of threats to whales and become a body that works for the whales and not the whalers. The IWC meeting runs from May 28th - 31st. Notes: 1.The Big Blue March global events took place in over 50 cities, including on the Galapagos Islands, in New Zealand, Russia, Fiji, USA, Argentina and across Europe. For a full list of locations, events and images check out: www.whales.greenpeace.org. 2. www.savethewhalesagain.com 3. www.surfersforcetaceans.com 4.The 'Migrating Human Whale' is a unique project by aerial artist John Quigley, hosted in five cities from Mexico to Alaska: www.oceanday.net

Taiji Dolphin Slaughter Still Happening important! [article added :: 30-03-2007] Release date: 29-03-2007 Source: Seashepherd.org INFORMATION ON MASS DOLPHIN KILLS AND WHAT WE CAN DO ABOUT STOPPING IT! Each year from October through March, in small towns across Japan, thousands of dolphins and small whales are confined and brutally killed. These slaughters take place in fishing towns including Taiji, Iki, Ito, Futo and Izu. During those months, Japanese fishermen herd whole families and pods of dolphins, porpoises and small whales into shallow bays and mercilessly hack them to death. Most of these small cetaceans are sold as meat in restaurants and stores, while some are destined for a life in captivity. In addition to the small cetaceans being massacred on the beaches, Japan kills approximately 100,000 more marine mammals (primarily Dall’s porpoises and also dolphins) in its fishing industry. This killing must stop! Sea Shepherd has been in the forefront of fighting against the slaughter of dolphins, whales and all marine wildlife for over 25 years, and we are committed to ending the barbaric and senseless slaughters in Taiji and other villages in Japan. More info: > http://www.seashepherd.org/taiji/ > http://www.seashepherd.org/taiji/taiji_what_you_can_do.html

Operation Leviathan- Sea Shepherd important! [article added :: 02-10-2006] Release date: 02-10-2006 Source: seashepherd.org Operation Leviathan: Defending the Whales of Antarctica 2006-07 The whales are counting on us for protection... Japan will begin illegally killing over 1,000 whales again this fall and Sea Shepherd will be there to protect them. Operation Leviathin is Sea Shepherd's Campaign to raise $3 Million to return to Antarctica Japan's Killing Fleet In December 2006 & January 2007, the Japanese whaling fleet will begin to illegally kill 1,000 whales in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary. Fifty of these whales will be endangered humpbacks and another fifty will be endangered fin whales. Although the Japanese claim research as their motivation, the only research they are undertaking is product development and marketing of whale meat – to turn their illicit whale flesh into dog food, cosmetics, and sushi dishes they make huge profits. The killing of these whales is a gross violation of numerous international treaties and regulations including the U.N. World Charter for Nature and the Antarctic Territorial Treaty – commercial whaling is outlawed and it is illegal to hunt endangered species in an international whale sanctuary. It is more important than ever that we act now. Operation Leviathan: The Plan for 2006 Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has embarked on Operation Leviathan: a campaign to raise funds for a new vessel to return to Antarctica in December to defend the whales. In order for us to be effective, we must have a ship that can match the speed of the Japanese whaling fleet and enforce international conservation law. Our goal for this effort is $3 million to be raised in cash and pledges so that we can purchase a ship similar to the one pictured above. This is a huge undertaking for us considering our annual budget ($1.4M) and our time constraints - but one that will meet with great success if we all participate. We are more determined than ever to defend these whales which deserve to live their lives wild and free. We believe that the heritage of future generations should include the magnificent and intelligent whales and that the delicately balanced ecosystems that we enjoy are preserved for future generations. The whales are counting on us for protection . . . We are counting on you to get us there. HELP US REACH OUR GOAL TO SAVE THE WHALES! OPERATION LEVIATHAN GOAL: $3,000,000 As of September 26, 2006: $1,267,071 More info: > http://seashepherd.org/leviathan/

Death of a Baby Whale important! [article added :: 24-07-2006] Release date: 24-07-2006 Source: S4C Byron Bay “no whale or dolphin shall be subjected to arbitrary arrest, detention or exile” Article 4: Universal Declaration of Marine Mammal Rights (declared 1994) adapted from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (adopted 1948 Article 9) Friday 21st July 2006 Mid afternoon last Monday, (July 17th 2006), a newborn female humpback whale, perhaps in panic became separated from her mother and made an ultimately fatal turn towards land, stranding onto the beach north of Cabarita on an outgoing tide. As someone with 30 years of dedicated interest in Cetaceans and their protection, and with experience in strandings, I came up with friends immediately on getting the call for rescue volunteers. What transpired was so deeply disturbing to us that I feel duty bound in the best interest of cetaceans to question how decisions and protracted indecisions were sanctioned, and call for an open forum to avoid such unwarranted process and outcomes in the future. Firstly, it has to be said that one assumes that everyone at a stranding expects the intention of a rescue is to quickly assess whales and dolphins to expidite their return to their home environment, the open sea. The highest priority for the Cabarita calf, who by all appearances and behaviour was in excellent condition, was for her to be back with her mother as soon as possible – yet she was never giver the chance, not once, to return to open waters. Just as we arrived (around 9.30pm) at the site, and went straight in to help people supporting the whale in a sling in the shallows, NPWS instructed the group, without consultation or explanation, to lift the whale and bring her, against all logic, out of the sea. This was greeted with shock, confusion, and considerable if somewhat muted dissent, but the poor whale was swept ashore in the conscientious effort of 'following orders' teamwork, and the assumption that this was only a temporary measure. An apparently fit baby whale, carried away from the support of the sea, terrified, her chances of ever returning gradually whittled away, in a series of rationales (often completely inaccurate) and procedures (such as trying for an hour to procure a blood sample from her painfully sensitive tail) that became more lethal by the minute. Somehow, a stranding rescue has turned into scientific research, and the whale’s priorities subsumed to officialdom. I’m sure many people who saw the whale the next day laying up on the beach at the high tide mark assumed that is where she was washed up to, but unbelievably, that is where she was carried to. How could removing the calf to land be considered a best option, and what reasons could possibly override the obvious imperative of returning her to the ocean and her family? Well, “occupational health and safety” and “public liability” were stated reasons for essentially, removing the volunteers from the sea – and so the whale was removed too! My query about signing liability wavers was shrugged off. Removing the calf from the sea isn’t even a poor third place option behind direct repatriation or cradling in the shallows, and can never be justified without a suitable onsite installation - essentially a mobile swimming pool that would give her neutral buoyancy, continued blood flow and reduce unnecessary visual stimulus. Instead, for 14 interminable hours, the Cabarita calf suffered her own crushing weight onto her lungs, organs, throat and flippers with increasing toxaemia and dehydration, her gullet choked with sand. All this suffering through the night awaiting a Sea World Veterinarian to take a blood sample and ascertain her health. Awaiting a helicopter search for her mother – who may well have moved on by dawn after her calf calls fell silent for so long. Awaiting a lethal injection… as what? A better option than swimming out the previous day/evening to the humpback whales not so far out behind the gentle waves? What has happened to our belief in the greatness of whales and their societies when it is assumed that humans, at their convenience are best suited to reunite the calf with her mother – rather than the whales themselves? All that was needed was that simple initial assistance by people, past the waves, for the calf to swim out an pick up with the migration, to be taken in by her family, however extended, and returned to her mum by an aunt or sister or even a compassionate lactating mother. All through the night and the next morning, the calf lay turned away from the sea as humpback after humpback swam past behind her. What is the reasoning of not getting the calf out to the other whales as soon as it was light – protecting the calf from rejection? Waiting for an ‘expert’ to say her condition is deteriorating and sharks might attack her? Straight-jacketed, struggling to breath, frightened and stressed by the terrible terrestrial experience imposed upon her, the valiant calf, ever alert, never gave up her desire to be in the sea. She wasn’t even granted the grace of being placed back in the shallows as she died from a lethal injection. I could write about many other iniquities that this baby humpback suffered so needlessly, but mostly as I write I am hurting deeply from my own sense of having failed that divine spirited being who so much wanted to be alive, back in the ocean. Equally I feel for her grieving mother. Yes, I sang and “whispered” to that whale all night long to try to ease her dreadful suffering, but now I am suffering for not having shouted against the wind, for not having screamed down the walls of obstruction, of procrastination and of neglect. And so now, with a stronger voice, I ask that we can all move forward with the intention of honoring the best interests of the whales. Lets prioritise rescue back to the sea over any last resort rescue to the land. We need efficient local phone trees to activate volunteers. We need a re-hydration solution and process implemented for suckling cetaceans. Supported in a pool, the Cabarita calf would have had the ability to receive and swallow milk substitutes. We need to respect the rights of whales and dolphins. Lets have faith in the freedom option. - Howie Cooke Surfers for Cetaceans?

NEWS FROM THE IWC important! [article added :: 20-06-2006] Release date: 20-06-2006 Source: Environmental Investigation Agency NEWS FROM THE IWC EIA campaigners daily report back from the 58th annual meeting of the International Whaling Commission. For daily updates visit www.eia-international.org More info: > http://www.eia-international.org/cgi/news/news.cgi?t=template&a=314&source=

IWC UPDATE [article added :: 19-06-2006] Release date: 17-06-2006 Source: Media Releases Surfers for Cetaceans is happy to note that the moratorium on commercial whaling which has been in place for 20 years was upheld by a narrow margin at the IWC meeting. The final vote came down to 31 to 30 in favour of maintaining the whaling ban. Unfortunately whales will continue to be killed by Japan, Norway and Iceland and some other countries with Japan ramping up the "scientific research" whaling rort and once again hammer the beleagured Minke whales with a self declared quota of 850 plus or minus 10%, which lead to the death of 853 Minkes in the last Austral summer. Also Japan intends to slaughter the endangered Fin whale (protected since 1976), which they attacked, killing they claim, 10 in the same summer. Furthermore Japan has stated it's intention to brutally harpoon 50 South Pacific Humpback whales (protected since 1963) and 50 Fin whales every year for the next 18 years under a inhumane and cynical violation of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. So these times continue to be, despite the moratorium still holding, the WORST for whales in the last 20 years as the whaling countries stubbornly refuse to listen to the wish of the international community at large to see cetaceans given a real status of freedom and respect. We lovers of the Wave and the Ocean must stay united and committed to the protection of our Ocean family.

Japan's whale kill a sham: Australia important! [article added :: 06-04-2006] Release date: 05-04-2006 Source: Nine MSN The Australian government says it now has concrete evidence that proves Japan's so-called scientific whaling program, under which thousands of the mammals are killed, is a sham. The evidence is the result of a 10-year research program conducted in the waters off Australia's Antarctic territory. The program has revealed information about the marine ecosystem, including information on the whales' favourite food, krill. "It demonstrates once and for all, if it needed to be demonstrated, that the so-called scientific programs of the countries like Japan, Norway and Iceland, are a sham," Environment Minister Ian Campbell told reporters.Japan will this month complete its Antarctic summer whale kill and is expected to take more than 900 minke whales and 10 fin whales. Japan rejects calls to end whaling by claiming the kill is necessary to conduct scientific studies on the mammals. The slaughter is carried out under the auspices of the Japanese Cetacean Research Institute, which says it is using the whales to determine, among other things, what they eat. Senator Campbell said the findings of the research showed the reasons for killing the whales was invalid. "The research that Dr Nick Gayles and our team of Australian Antarctic Division (AAD) scientists have done in fact covers, for example, the first three objectives of the Japanese JARPA II program, which is all about understanding the Antarctic ecosystem," he said. "It has collected the material and gives us the evidence we need to build the understanding that the Japanese, in particular say, they need to kill literally thousands of animals to achieve." Senator Campbell said the government and the AAD would provide whaling nations Japan, Norway and Iceland with all of the material from the research. "I'll be making sure that occurs before the next IWC (International Whaling Commission) meeting in St Kitts in June," Senator Campbell said. "It needs to underscore to all of the people of the world, the IWC and everybody else in the world, the incredible importance of whale conservation and the fact that destroying them ... is in fact not science, not justified and worse, it's done in the name of science."

About Whales Alive [article added :: 30-01-2006] Release date: 30-01-2006 Source: Whales Alive Release Whales Alive is a Pacific based, non-profit organisation dedicated to the protection and celebration of Whales and their fragile marine habitat. Our offices in Australia, Hawaii and Tong are working in a number of different areas on behalf of whales and dolphins. Through conservation, education & training and vital research we are working to educate people about the whales fascinating natural history and what threatens their survival. Whales Alive is not a member organisation and is funded only by grants and donations. Whales Alive acts as a bridge between current marine mammal research and the community in Australia and the Pacific region. We: - provide specialised training for marine tourism operators working in the whale watching industry, - provide technical advice on marine mammal conservation and management issues to Governments and industry, - assist the development of regional and international whale sanctuaries - provide consultation in the development of whale watching guidelines - deliver marine mammal education programs to the general public and schools. The Whales Alive Youth (WAY) Marine Program is a seven-month marine education and personal development program for young adults, which culminates in a rite of passage at sea on board the Oceania Projects’ Whale Research Expedition in Hervey Bay. The program, which fosters conservation of the marine environment and confidence through marine based challenges such as sail training, kayaking, and surf safety, requires the young participants to fundraise their fares locally. What do we do in the South Pacific? Whales Alive has been working in the South Pacific for the sustainable development of whale watching nature tourism, and the development of national and regional whale sanctuaries. This work is largely in partnership with regional governments, IFAW (the International Fund For Animal Welfare) and SPREP (Secretariat for the Pacific Regional Environment Programme) under the framework of SPREP’s Whale and Dolphin Action Plan. Whales Alive has assisted Governments in the South Pacific to develop legislation for national whale sanctuaries which now cover 12 million square km of Pacific Ocean. Whales Alive facilitates workshops for Government and industry in the Pacific region to develop guidelines for interactions with marine mammals. These workshops have identified research priorities and developed action plans for legal framework to protect marine mammals. Whales Alive trainers have developed an ongoing education and outreach program as well as an operator and guide training program in the South Pacific. Whale presentations are toured to schools and villages throughout the islands to promote whale watching as an economic alternative to whaling and the need to preserve the region’s fragile populations of migratory whales. Whales Alive works closely with the South Pacific Whale Research Consortium (SPWRC) and Southern Cross University Whale Research Centre (SCUWRC) to conduct photographic, acoustic and genetic research on marine mammal populations. This information aids the conservation and management of the animals and is helping to build a case against the Japanese scientific whaling program. Where there’s a whale there’s a way www.whalesalive.org.au Director Australia, Olive Andrews: whalesalive@byronit.com Director Tonga, Filipe Tonga: ifawvav@kalianetvav.to Director Hawaii, Mel Rice: melrice@prodigy.net More info: > Whales Alive Website