In Defence of the Great Whales
by Captain Paul Watson

The situation with Japanese whaling is quite simply that the activities of the Japanese whaling fleet are illegal under international conservation law.

Japanese whalers are targeting protected and endangered whales in an established international whale sanctuary in violation of a global moratorium on commercial whaling. In so doing, they are in violation of the regulations of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES), and the Antarctic Treaty which specifically prohibits commercial activity in Antarctic waters. The refuelling of the whaling ships south of sixty degrees is also a violation of the Antarctic Treaty. In addition, the Japanese whalers are in contempt of a Federal Australian Court ruling that in January 2008 specifically prohibited whaling activities in the Australian Antarctic Territory.

Japanese claims that they are doing “research” whaling are bogus. This so called research began in 1986, the year the commercial moratorium was imposed. There is no provision to do “research” whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary and the Japanese whalers have not been given CITES permits to kill endangered Fin whales.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is not protesting Japanese whaling. We are an anti-poaching organization and we are intervening in accordance with the principles of the United Nation World Charter for Nature, ratified by the United Nation General Assembly in 1982 that allows for non-governmental organizations to uphold international conservation law.

Since the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was established in 1977, the organization has consistently intervened against illegal activities that exploit marine life and habitats. The Society has never been convicted of any felony crimes arising out of our interventions and no person has ever been injured in a Sea Shepherd campaign. We have an unblemished record of non-violence although we refer to our approach as aggressive non-violence because we have no hesitation in destroying equipment that is illegally used to violate international conservation law.

The strategy of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is to undermine the profits of the Japanese whaling industry. Our objective is to sink the Japanese whaling fleet – economically. For three years in a row we have negated whaling profits and cut their quotas in half. They are in debt and losing money every year they return. We will continue to oppose and intervene against their illegal activities until we bankrupt their industry.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is an international marine conservation organization funded by private donations and our ships are staffed by dedicated volunteer men and women from around the world. What we do is legal, effective, educational and makes for a compelling television series illustrating how average people can successfully defend our planet in the most remote and hostile area of the world against a powerful, wealthy yet viciously violent criminal opposition.

My crew and I risk our lives in defence of defending life in our oceans. This is the ultimate reality show – because nothing is more real than risking all to defend this planet.

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