Southern Ocean —
Greenpeace ships Esperanza and the Arctic Sunrise intercepted the Japanese whaling fleet, with ties to U.S. seafood giant, Gorton’s of Gloucester, and called on it to “leave the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary immediately.” The two ships declared their intention to stop the hunt. Greenpeace is calling on Gorton’s to persuade parent company Nissui, which owns one third of the Japanese whaling fleets, to respect public opinion and end the whale slaughter.
While the Greenpeace ships were relaying their message, two 'catcher
ships' arrived with dead minke whales hanging from their hulls, ready
for transfer to the fleet's factory ship, the Nisshin Maru. However,
the Esperanza was blocking access to the Nisshin Maru’s stern ramp and
one 'catcher' ship deliberately collided with the Esperanza in an
attempt to push it out of the way. The Esperanza pulled back and no
casualties are reported. The Japanese fleet reacted by blasting the
activists with powerful water hoses.
“This week, was the first time that I have seen a whale in my life and
sadly, I am now watching a gutted carcass being hauled aboard a meat
processing ship,” said Nathan Santry, one of the Greenpeace activists
on board the ships. “I was shocked when I found out that Gorton’s of
Gloucester is practically wielding the harpoon.”
Although there is currently a global ban on commercial whaling, six
Japanese whaling ships left on November 8 for the Southern Ocean Whale
Sanctuary in Antarctica, using the guise of research to justify the
hunt. The Fisheries Agency of Japan intends to more than double its
kill this year and will include endangered whales. The Japanese
government has not responded to protests from around the world or to
the International Whaling Commission which recently called on Japan to
abandon their whaling program.
According to a 2005 report prepared by the Environmental Investigation
Agency (EIA), Nissui, a Japanese company that purchased Gorton’s of
Gloucester in 2001, is also a major shareholder of Kyodo Senpaku, which
owns and operates the Japanese whaling fleets. When contacted, Gorton
officials denied any of the findings in the report and stated that the
company was “against whaling of any kind.” The company also
turned down requests from Greenpeace, the Humane Society and EIA for a
meeting.
“Gorton’s asks consumers to ‘Trust the Gorton’s fisherman,’ but
Americans will not trust a company linked to whale killings,” said John
Hocevar, Greenpeace Oceans Specialist. “When Gorton’s see its parent
company harpooning whales this month, will they do everything in their
power to stop these killings, or will they keep denying
responsibility?”
Upon leaving the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, Greenpeace’s ship, the
Esperanza will begin a 14-month expedition across four of the world’s
five oceans, exposing environmental threats and calling for solutions,
including protected marine reserves. Entitled, Defending Our Oceans, it
is Greenpeace’s most ambitious ship expedition to date. The ship will
be equipped with high tech equipment, including underwater line cameras
and a Remote Operating Vehicle, which will allow explorations of ocean
areas that have not been documented.
