It’s Called Piracy
One day after threatening to ram Japanese ships in Antarctic waters, two members of a radical environmentalist group have illegally boarded a ship and their group is now complaining that the boarders are being detained.
Two members of the radical anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd are reportedly being held against their will on a Japanese whaling ship in Antarctic waters.
In a vessel called Steve Irwin, members of the group had been pursuing Japan's annual whaling hunt in the Antarctic for almost a month.
After locating five Japanese whaling boats this morning, two of its activists – Australian Benjamin Potts and British man Giles Lane – boarded the Yushin Maru No 2 vessel. They handed the crew a letter advising them they were "illegally killing whales" and were then detained.
"They were successful in delivering the message, but then they were not allowed to leave and return to our vessel," said Sea Shepherd spokeswoman Christine Vasic.
"Yushin Maru No 2 is still moving away from us and not responding to radio contact."
The Institute for Cetacean Research, which is linked to the Japanese government, confirmed the two men were detained and locked in a room on the ship, but denied claims by the Sea Shepherd founder, Paul Watson, that the two had been assaulted and bound by a rope to a mast.
"Any accusations that we have tied them up or assaulted them are completely untrue," said institute chief Minoru Morimoto.
"It is illegal to board another country's vessels on the high seas. As a result, they are being held in custody while decisions are made on their future," he said.
The radical group claims the two were just delivering the letter. The Japanese ship, however reports that the two threw acid on the deck of the ship and that Sea Shepherd has been attempting to foul the ship's screws with ropes. Merriam-Webster's Dictionary of Law defines piracy thusly:
pi·ra·cy Pronunciation: 'pI-r&-sE Function: noun
1 : an act of robbery esp. on the high seas; specifically : an illegal act of violence, detention, or plunder committed for private ends by crew or passengers of a private ship or aircraft against another ship or aircraft on the high seas or in a place outside the jurisdiction of any state.
Japan has a strong case against Sea Shepherd - and I hope they pursue it. I'm not a big fan of whaling, but I am also not at all sympathetic with people who pull this kind of terrorism out of some distorted vision of what constitutes right.
Animals, World news | Gaius Tuesday, 15 January , 2008
By Anthony (Los Angeles), Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 9:59 am
Yes, but they’re for the whales*, so they have the moral high ground and thus have a duty and the right to, well, make asses of themselves.
*(Substitute “animals,” “the children,” “peace,” and “the environment” as needed.)
By feeblemind, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 10:13 am
Off topic: There is an article headlined at Drudge about how Nanny Nacy has changed the menu at the Congressional Cafeteria. It’s a hoot.
By Gaius, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 10:58 am
Well, it has a topic now, feeblemind. Thanks for the tip - that was a honey of a story.
By terrence, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 11:27 am
The Japanese should keelhaul the self-righteous scumbag pirates.
By Uncle Pinky, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 1:02 pm
claims by the Sea Shepherd founder, Paul Watson, that the two had been assaulted and bound by a rope to a mast.
Somebody with an over-romanticized vision of himself has been watching too many Errol Flynn movies. And it’s not me.
By sam, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 1:03 pm
Never been a fan of whale meat, too fatty and all. But my sympathy is for the whalers, not the greenies.
By martian, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 3:33 pm
A terrorist by any other name…………………
Let’s face it, call them terrorists or pirates (and either would be accurate) the two morons who boarded the Japanese ship placed themselves at the mercy of the laws of the sovereign nation to whom the ship belongs. I don’t know the Japanese penalty for piracy but I’m sure I wouldn’t want to have it happen to me. They deserve what they get.
By MikeM, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 7:07 pm
Considering the name of the greenies ship, all I can say is, “Crikey!”
By feeblemind, Tuesday, 15 January , 2008 @ 10:31 pm
The greens can pull these stunts because they have political clout and they know they can get away with it. Sentence them to breaking rocks for 20 yrs for this type of nonsense and the behavior would soon cease.
By martian, Wednesday, 16 January , 2008 @ 10:41 am
What? Actually make them accept the cosequences of their actions? Have you gone round the bend, feeblemind? People who do things with the best of intentions (including committing crimes up to and including the commission of piracy on the high seas) aren’t supposed to pay any price for doing so. They’re supposed to be applauded, lionized, given tickertape parades! Those poor, mistreated whale defenders have been misused. The Japanese who own the ship should be ashamed of themselves for upholding the laws of their nation and taking pirates into custody! /sarcasm off
By Gaius, Wednesday, 16 January , 2008 @ 10:44 am
That is precisely what they are saying today.