Causecast

By SHANNON FLAHERTY, Contributing Writer

According to a report from Japan’s Fisheries Agency in Tokyo, some ships in its six-ship fleet have returned home after clashes with the hardline anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.

Japan, which considers whaling to be a cherished cultural tradition, killed 679 minke whales although it planned to catch closer to 850. It also caught one fin whale, falling far short of its target of 50.

Since their seasonal hunt began in November, the ships could not carry out whaling for a total of 16 days because of bad weather and skirmishes with the Sea Shepherd activists, including a collision that crushed a railing on one of the Japanese ships.

Deterring the Japanese whaling fleet was the ultimate goal of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society during its fifth Antarctic Whale Defense Campaign (2008-2009). This year’s campaign had been named Operation Musashi in reference to the legendary Japanese strategist, Miyamoto Musashi. The samurai warrior and tactician is a personal hero of Captain Paul Watson, founder and president of Sea Shepherd.

“We intend to sink the Japanese fleet economically,” said Watson. “Our strategy is to prevent whales from being killed, to force the Japanese whalers to spend money on fuel without killing whales. We will once again intervene against illegal Japanese whaling and once again we intend to save the lives of as many whales as we can with the resources available to us. We have been the cause of the Japanese whaling fleet losing profits for three years in a row. We intend to make it a fourth year of red ink for the whaler’s books.”

The name Operation Musashi was chosen to reflect Sea Shepherd’s approach of aggressive, yet nonviolent, confrontation and the increasing global awareness of Japan’s ongoing whaling activities.

Japan has a moratorium on catching humpback whales, a favorite with whale watchers, after international criticism. However, even after a global moratorium in 1986 stopped commercial whaling, Japan began what it calls a scientific research whaling program the following year, and whale meat can still be found in some supermarkets and restaurants.

To learn more about how Causecast member organizations do their part to defend animal rights around the world, visit the Humane Society and PETA2.
Photo by guano, flickr