Wietse Van Der Werf – AmeliasMagazine

Amelia’s Magazine | At War for the Whales: Part 2

The Japanese harpoon ship, approved Shonan Maru No 2 appears behind the iceberg (photo credit: Barbara Veiga / Sea Shepherd)

It has been an eventful couple of months at sea and most of us are eager to get back to the whaling grounds as soon as possible. Two days ago we departed from Fremantle, Western Australia, for the third voyage down to the Antarctic waters, where the whalers continue their whaling season under the guise of ‘scientific research’. We have been at sea for well over 2 months now and returned to port twice for refuelling. When we initially left for the campaign in early December, we were tailed by the Shonan Maru II, a Japanese harpoon ship turned spy vessel, as soon as we left Australian waters. The ship stayed with us wherever we went. We tried to lose it by heading into ice or heavy weather, but could not shake them.

Illustration by Kerry Lemon

I step outside on the aft deck to see the spy ship, Shonan Maru II, bearing down upon us fast. Our helicopter had been launched earlier to verify what ship it actually is, as we hadn’t come within clear visual range before. Upon arrival, the helicopter had a Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) pointed at it. This is a device that sends out a highly directional noise, aimed at disorientating or even incapacitating a person. Using it on our helicopter while it is mid-air is, to say the least, totally irresponsible. With the helicopter now safely back on the Steve Irwin, it seems that the Japanese ship is coming in for the attack. With its water cannons blasting at full power, it is trying to come alongside us, presumably to give the helicopter a wash down, in an effort to damage it. As it chases us, loudspeakers blast: “This is the Shonan Maru captain! You are too close to me! You are too close to me!” Meanwhile we have a prop-fouler ready, which is a long rope we trail from the end of our ship to keep them at bay. If they were to come too close and run over the line, it could get entangled in their propeller and cause serious damage. They know this and are unable to come as close as they’d like. They keep trying but by now we are entering an ice field full of mid-size growlers and after a few sharp manoeuvres the Japanese ship backs off. They fall back but stay behind us within radar range.

The Japanese harpoon vessel, Shonan Maru No 2 on the run with water cannons blasting (photo credit: Michael Williams / Sea Shepherd)

A couple of days later we are anchored up in Commonwealth Bay, overlooking the Antarctic continent on one side and the open sea on the other. Our spy ship can still be seen lurking about on the horizon. We haven’t been able to get rid of her, so we take shelter in these waters, which are French territory. Perhaps the French can help.

We switch off the engines and while one of the officers gets in the helicopter to visit the French base Dumont D’urville, some of the crew strip down for the traditional dive in the freezing Antarctic waters. As negotiations with the French continue into the afternoon, some of us head out in the small boat towards Cape Denison, home to a colony of 30.000 Adelie penguins and the spot where the Australian scientist Mawson landed in 1911. I step foot on land and realise how few people must have been fortunate enough to see this place. Snow covers the land as far as the eye can see and the smell of the fresh and sharp air takes some getting used to. Looking out at sea, the coastline is covered with rocks and home to thousands of Adelie penguins.

A penguin on an iceberg in Antarctica (Photo: Eric Cheng / Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

Following a bunch of penguins walking towards a huge icy ridge, it strikes me that this is probably one of the very few places of true wilderness left. Untouched by human hands, growth, development, exploitation. So far Antarctica has enjoyed fairly good protection. The Antarctic Treaty prohibits commercial and/or military activity on and around the continent and states that the number of cruise ships is to be kept to a minimum.
However, there are vast resources, such as oil and there are theories that when the treaty is re-negotiated in a few years, some countries including Japan will try to loosen these conditions in order to gain access. Some people argue that the only reason Japan continues its whaling operations in the Southern Ocean is so that it will have some ‘historical claim’ over the resources in the area, if it would ever be opened up for exploitation. Whatever the reasons, right now the Japanese fleet operates illegally in the area, threatening this habitat and the creatures that depend on its protection for their survival, which is all that matters to us.

Illustration by Kerry Lemon

Seeing our ship in the far distance, anchored up in the bay, makes me feel proud to know that we are here for these animals and to protect this unique and untouched wilderness from the destructive hands of corporate power. I head back down towards the water, in the small boat and back to the ship. The commander of the French base has written a letter of support, but without some kind of navy presence in the area, they are unable to do much more than that. We pull up anchor and head back out into what now has become quite a rough sea. Not getting much sleep as we are thrown about by the 15 foot swells.

photo credit: Glenn Lockitch / Sea Shepherd

Sea Shepherd has always enjoyed support from the ranks of Hollywood with, among many, Martin Sheen, Pierce Brosnan and Darryl Hannah donating their time and resources for the cause. The latest to join the list is Ady Gil, a businessman from Los Angeles, who has donated a large sum of money to help us purchase a second vessel. The ship, previously known as Earthrace, is a super fast trimaran powerboat which broke the world circumnavigation record in 2008, is bio-diesel powered and looks like something to have sailed straight out of the latest batman movie. Its skipper and creator Pete Bethune is eager to join the Sea Shepherd campaign and with the financial backing, the ship is refitted and renamed Ady Gil. We are on our way to meet up with the Ady Gil, which left Hobart two weeks earlier, to transfer food and other supplies. As we steam north, our spy ship keeps a steady two nautical miles behind us.

photo credit: Glenn Lockitch / Sea Shepherd

We are getting closer to the Ady Gil and I go up to the bridge to see what is going on. Nothing shows on the radar. The boat is so small that it can go about its business virtually undetected. In addition, we take advantage of the short bit of darkness to covertly meet up. I step out on deck. ‘Over there, can you see?’ I can just about make out a tiny black spot in the vast darkness. We launch a small boat and pick up two of the crew. After a short meeting they head off into the darkness again. We set course for Hobart and the Ady Gil heads towards the spy ship in an attempt to take it out of action. Prop-foulers come out, stink bombs are thrown onto the deck and a photonic disruptor aimed at distracting those on the bridge is put to use. It is all part of our essential arsenal of non-violent tactics to shut down the whalers. In 30 years of operations Sea Shepherd has never caused a single injury as a result of any of its actions. We are non-violent yet honest about the fact that we take aggressive action. Exactly the type of action that is necessary to stop these criminal whale poachers. A few hours later we notice that the spy ship has caught up with us again. As we sail into Australian waters the Japanese ship stays put at the Economic Exclusion Zone (EEZ) boundary, unwilling to escalate the ongoing international stand-off over whaling.

Read Part 1 here. Part 3 coming soon…

For latest updates and news, please see the Sea Shepherd website: www.seashepherd.org

Written by Wietse Van Der Werf on Tuesday February 16th, 2010 6:59 pm

Categories ,Adelie penguins, ,Ady Gil, ,Antarctica, ,Atlantic, ,Barbara Veiga, ,Cape Denison, ,conservation, ,Darryl Hannah, ,Dumont D’urville, ,Eric Cheng, ,france, ,Harpoon, ,Hollywood, ,Ice, ,Illegal Whaling, ,japan, ,Kerry Lemon, ,Los Angeles, ,Martin Sheen, ,Mawson, ,Michael Williams, ,Penguins, ,Pete Bethune, ,Pierce Brosnan, ,Sea Shepherd, ,Ship, ,Southern Ocean, ,Whale, ,Whaling, ,Wietse Van Der Werf

Amelia’s Magazine | At War for the Whales, Part 3

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Criss-crossing the international date line over two days, the crew were very possibly the first and last people on Earth to celebrate Jan 1, 2009. (Photo by Adam Lau/Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

New years eve. After the refuel and resupply we are back at sea, enjoying cake, drinks and a super vegan buffet. The sea is rough and outside it is pitch black. As we clear the EEZ boundary the spy ship is nowhere to be seen. Last we heard it was waiting for us just south of Hobart. Our plan of sneaking out under the cover of darkness and in bad weather seems to work. When we left in December the whalers had hired surveillance planes under false pretences so they could track our movements. This worked for a while, until the hire company found out what the real deal was. Even if they were able to find someone to hire them a plane, the weather might be too bad for them to come out. A group calling themselves ‘Taz Patrol’ later announced on Twitter that the spy ship was still waiting for us at the EEZ boundary when we had already sneaked out and were way out of their reach. Hurray!

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Dusk aboard the M/V Steve Irwin (Photo: Eric Cheng / Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

We sail straight south towards the Commonwealth Bay area, where we were not more than a fortnight ago. An Antarctic cruise ship spotted the whalers and some of the passengers informed us. The Ady Gil is roughly in the same area, though low on fresh water and fuel, they are waiting on us to be resupplied. As we are heading down, another vessel is coming in from the west. Kept secret until now, this is our third vessel, the ice-classed Bob Barker, named after the American TV presenter and animal rights campaigner who purchased it for us. It has been at sea for over a month now, trying to reach the whaling grounds to join in on the action. With the Ady Gil south east of the fleet, the Bob Barker coming in from the west and us bearing down on them from the north, there is literally nowhere for them to run.

The Bob Barker (photo: JoAnne McArthur / Sea Shepherd)

We have quite a way to go yet, about two and a half days sailing. The Bob Barker is closing in too and briefly meets with the Ady Gil. This is when things get ugly. The Bob Barker has located the whaling fleet and sets course for the factory ship Nisshin Maru. This ship, where the whales are hauled onto and processed once they have been caught, is at the hearth of the whaling fleet. You shut it down and the rest of the ships are unable to operate. The Nissin Maru starts running at full speed. Meanwhile, the other whaling ships scatter in different directions. It seems the chase is on.

photo: Glenn Lockitch / Sea Shepherd

We are on watch in the engine room. The phone rings, it is the bridge. ‘Hey guys, have you heard the news?’ I listen intently as the story unfolds. The Ady Gil is drifting close by the Bob Barker, waiving and cheering before leaving to meet up with us, still some distance away. The vessel is drifting, not accelerating, and the some of the crew sit on the aft deck. In the distance the spy ship Shonan Maru No 2 is approaching at full speed. It is getting closer and closer and at a distance of about a hundred meters it starts to turn sharply towards the Ady Gil. When the crew realize what is going on, they fire up the engines and start to pull back, hoping to avoid a collision, but to no avail. The more than 800 tonnes heavy harpoon ship throws itself into the much smaller trimaran. It crashes into the vessel, tearing open its hull and cutting off 4 metres of the bow.

Whalers Ram Sea Shepherd Ship Ady Gil (photo credit: JoAnne McArthur / Sea Shepherd)

The Ady Gil starts sinking. A MAYDAY distress signal is sent out and the Bob Barker changes course and rushes to its aid. It gets there just in time to rescue the 6 crew members from the vessel. The Japanese whaling fleet ignores the emergency distress signals and steams away, hoping to loose us and continue their illegal whaling operation elsewhere. The Shonun Maru No 2 ignores the distress signal at first but later agrees to stay nearby after the Bob Barker makes numerous radio calls to them, relaying the urgency of the situation. The rest of the whaling fleet runs far west.

Ady Gil Sinking (Photo: Glenn Lockitch / Sea Shepherd)

The next day, everyone on the ship is catching up with the impact that the ramming and sinking of the Ady Gill is having. On the international stage, media wise and in turn how it effects people all over the world who hear about what is going on and are starting to ask questions. From the emails we are receiving and the reports we are reading, it seems that the world media is all over this. It has definitely put whaling back on the map, though I doubt that governments will finally live up to their obligation to uphold the laws they undersigned to protect these whales. In a sense it feels like governments aren’t even part of this whole situation anymore. It is down to us, the only force in the Southern Ocean to protect these gentle giants of the sea from the deadly harpoons that are after them. Looking to shoot, pull, haul up and process, what in business terms will be another few boxes of whale meat on the inventory. Another product in the freezer storage ready to be distributed once the fleet arrives back in Japan. Another statistic on the books for the whaling company. That is what it is for the whalers, for those with no regard for the sacredness of life, with no understanding of the importance that a healthy ocean and therefore healthy planet has to all of us.

Southern Ocean, Jan 2010 (Photo: It’s a Wildlife)

After the sinking of the Ady Gil we turn at full speed in pursuit of the whaling fleet. After 10 days they are still running from us. When they are nearing the boundary of the area they have allocated themselves to conduct their ‘research’ in, an announcement is made that the area is to suddenly be expanded by another 1000 nautical miles west. Very convenient. We are forced to change course to meet the Bob Barker as they are running low on supplies.

Humpback breaching, Southern Ocean (Photo: It’s a Wildlife)

‘Attention all crew, whales breaching off the bow, whales breaching off the bow’. The announcement makes everyone jump into action straight away.
‘Whales! Quick quick!’ We all rush up the stairs and onto the deck. There, about 50 meters from the ship, two humpback whales jump out of the water, throwing their huge bodies up in the air, and crashing back down, causing huge eruptions on the surface. We all stand there in awe. So far, we hadn’t seen many whales at all. Quite a discouraging observation when you consider a vast industrial whaling fleet is looming about. But they’re definitely here and happy to show off their tricks. Under the sound of cheering and clapping from the ever growing spectator crowd on deck, they continue to breach, flip and dive back down. When you see these animals in the free, open ocean, their wilderness, their world, it gives you strength to carry on. Inspiration to pursue our goals in shutting down these pirate whalers.

Humpback breaching, Southern Ocean (Photo: It’s a Wildlife)

Read Part 2 and Part 1

For latest updates and news, please see the Sea Shepherd website

Written by Wietse Van Der Werf on Monday February 22nd, 2010 4:39 pm

Categories ,Bob Barker, ,Sea Shepherd, ,Whales, ,Wietse Van Der Werf

Amelia’s Magazine | At War for the Whales: #1 Heading Out

The M/V Steve Irwin looks for a way out of a dense field of icebergs (Photo: Eric Cheng / Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

As a young kid, visit this dosage I was always fascinated by the idea that the Blue Whale, more about the biggest animal ever to have lived on this planet, pill was still out there roaming the oceans. I prized a giant mural of a whale above my bed and every couple of months I sent some of my pocket money off to organisations who worked to keep my whale friends safe. Although whales and the whaling issue were kept in the back of my mind, it wasn’t until I reached my mid-twenties that I started realizing that these wonderful creatures were still actively being hunted, despite all the protection they are supposed to enjoy under international treaties. The more I read up on it, the crazier the whole situation seemed. For example, Fin whales are listed as an endangered (and thus protected) species on the IUCN Red List since 1996. They are illegaly hunted down and killed every year in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, a protected area for whales put in place by the United Nations in the mid 90′s. A whaling fleet from Japan enters these Antarctic waters around mid December to kill nearly 1000 whales (Piked whales and Fin whales) for ‘scientific research’.

Minke whale Illustrations by Kerry Lemon

One night, after reading some news articles about whaling, I just got so angry. Here are these beautiful creatures, hunted down and killed for a bit of quick money. Scientific research? Yeah, right! It makes me mad when I think about some ignorant businessmen down the line, filling their pockets with total disregard for the animals, the environment and the future generations that I hope will live to see these majestic creatures live freely like they deserve to, just as much as we humans do.

My anger quickly translated into action and within weeks I signed up to join the Sea Shepherd ship’s crew for their annual anti-whaling campaign in the Southern Ocean. Sea Shepherd founder Captain Paul Watson is known for his direct action tactics and the fact that he won’t back down from opposition or controversy and is more willing than anyone to put up a fight to defend ocean wildlife. Since 1979, Sea Shepherd has scuttled and sunk 10 illegal whaling ships at dockside, rammed and boarded ships at sea and confiscated many miles of illegal longline and driftnet. All this in the last 32 years in a war that has put the lives of whales, seals, dolphins, sharks, fish and sea birds first. Most importantly, a war in which Sea Shepherd has never sustained or caused injury to anyone as a result of its actions.

A whale surfaces at the edge of the sea ice in Antarctica. (Photo by Adam Lau/Sea Shepherd Conservation Society)

As a trained violin maker I had no ship skills whatsoever but the ship’s carpenter role was one I was able to fill. Sometimes people ask me what carpentry work there is to do on a ship. ‘Surely it’s all steel?’ Honestly, I have never made so many cabinets, bunks, cupboards, boxes, holders, storage racks, tables, benches, toilet roll holders and other wooden contraptions as in the last 18 months. The ship is always a hive of activity with deckhands, engineers, quartermasters, officers and cooks working hard to get the ship in top shape for the job at hand. Having been involved in activism for over 10 years, I don’t think I’ve ever worked with such a dedicated, hard working and committed bunch of people.

Bryde's whale

With a samba band, Terri, Bindi and Robert Irwin and many local people waving us off at dockside, we left Fremantle on 7th December with a course set for Antarctica. As soon as we left the Australian Economic Exclusion Zone we were trailed by a Japanese surveillance vessel, which has been following us ever since. We will reach the whaling grounds within the next few days and more that ever before we have the ability to shut them down. We have more resources at our disposal, more public support than ever before and the people of Japan are increasingly questioning the ongoing spending of millions of their tax payers money on this useless and cruel industry.

Close up of the Japanese harpoon ship. (Photo: Barbara Veiga / Sea Shepherd)

As the world leaders gathered in Copenhagen last month, failing to come to an agreement on tackling climate change and make emission cuts mandatory by international law, we were forced to set sail for thousands of miles to uphold another bit of major legislation they had agreed upon, but which they chose to ignore to enforce. What was it again, this thing agreed upon in the 80′s and at the time hailed as a massive victory for conservation? Something to do with whales?

If the nations of the world can so blatantly ignore an international treaty that is supposed to protect an endangered species in an established whale sanctuary, than what hope is there for the international community to enforce any type of legislation that is to fight climate change? The ongoing illegal whaling in the Southern Ocean is a slap in the face to conservation efforts around the world. A set back for environmental activists the world over. A stab in the back to those people who worked so hard to get the legislation agreed upon in the first place. For the sake of the whales, the international community and future generations we will sail into the Antarctic, find the whalers and give them what they deserve.

For latest updates and news, please see the Sea Shepherd website: www.seashepherd.org

Written by Wietse Van Der Werf on Tuesday February 2nd, 2010 1:14 pm

Categories ,Antarctica, ,australia, ,Blue Whale, ,conservation, ,Endangered species, ,Hunting, ,japan, ,Kerry Lemon, ,Research, ,Sea Shepherd, ,Steve Irwin, ,united nations, ,Whales, ,Whaling, ,Wietse Van Der Werf

Amelia’s Magazine | At War for the Whales: #5 It All Pays Off

Illustration by Anieszka Banks

After the night watches in the engine room I tend to go straight to bed and get as much sleep as possible before the next watch starts eight hours later. However, this morning is different. After the Ady Gil, our high-tech trimaran, was rammed and sunk by a harpoon ship a month earlier, its captain Pete Bethune has moved in with us. It seems that diplomacy on its own is going to do little to get him and his crew the justice they deserve. The deliberate collision caused by the Japanese ship endangered the life of his crew as well as causing the loss of the 3 million dollar vessel. Pete was a man with a plan and tonight he would set out for mission impossible: go out into the freezing waters of the Southern Ocean on a small jet ski, board a ship moving at speed and make a citizens arrest on its captain. The Shonan Maru 2 which had sunken the Ady Gil was still following us. Only a few miles behind us, Pete was determined to get his justice and put diplomatic pressure on the Japanese and New Zealand goverments to finally act against the illegal and dangerous actions of the whaling fleet.

Illustration by Anieszka Banks

Everyone fills the crew mess to say their goodbyes to Pete and wish him all the best for the mission. ‘Your courage and determination is admirable’ I say. ‘Without you topping up the oil everyday we wouldn’t be here’ he smiles. Since Pete joined the ship I’ve got to know him as a jolly and ambitious character. If there is anyone cut out for this job, it is him. Some of the crew had their doubts on whether the risky plan would work, but this morning Pete is so self-assured of success that he eliminates any doubt any of us had. After the jet ski is lowered in the water, we eagerly await any news. It all goes remarkably smoothly.

Photo by Adam Lau/Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

He falls during the first boarding attempt but was back on the jet ski again in minutes. In the second attempt he cuts through the security netting with a knife and climbs onboard. He then proceeds to walk up to the very top deck where he waits (without being noticed) for the remainder of night. At the break of daylight we launch the helicopter. With the cameras rolling Pete makes his way to the bridge to make contact with the Shonan Maru crew. He knocks on the bridge door and waits. Someone opens the door looking amazingly bewildered. Checking over the side; no boat to be seen. How did this man get here? Pete continues to hand over a letter ordering the arrest of the captain for sinking his vessel and for payment of $3 million in damages. The Japanese crew member tries to shoo Pete away and then goes back inside, leaving Pete to make his own in. This is the last we see of him. The media has since reported that Pete will be taken back to Japan for questioning and possible prosecution for ‘acts of piracy’.

Photo by Adam Lau/Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

We are stuck in ice again, lots of ice. This time it is not just us but the Nisshin Maru too. It takes hours of slow manoeuvring and avoiding the larger of the ice chunks, before we are in open water again. During the day I work outside, pumping lubrication oil into a tank from our spare barrels. An albatross lands on deck and walks towards me. It walks over my feet as if I’m not there and settles for a nice spot in between my legs by cuddling up against one of my boots. I stand there frozen, not sure what to do. Whenever I move, it moves with me. This beautiful bird, which travels thousands of miles along its migration routes has possibly never seen a human being before. It struck me that although we as humans push numerous species of animals and plants to extinction in our ever greater need to develop, grow and keep the profits up, it is me that is the alien species here, invading this bird’s habitat.

Photo: It’s A Wildlife

That evening, running low on fuel, we are forced to head back to land. With whaling stopped for over 3 weeks, this is the longest and most successful anti-whaling campaign in the Southern Ocean to date. For the last few weeks we were right where we wanted to be most. The one place where we can be sure that all illegal whaling operations in the Southern Ocean have stopped. It is here, right behind the Nisshin Maru that our months of preparation and hard work pay off. One by one the whaling ships that surrounded us before have dropped off our radar screen. Three harpoon ships sailed off over the horizon not be seen again and after Pete Bethune boarded the Shonan Maru, this one too is out of action. I stood outside on deck last night and looked at the factory ship in front of us for one last time before we turned and headed back to port. I felt a great sense of pride, to know that in the 21st century it is still a committed, dedicated and hard working group of ordinary people that can bring about the change needed to keep this planet healthy and sane. In fact, it is the only thing that ever has.

Photo: Eric Cheng / Sea Shepherd Conservation Society

For latest updates and news, please see the Sea Shepherd website

To read about all this from the beginning see part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4

Written by Wietse Van Der Werf on Thursday March 25th, 2010 12:02 pm

Categories ,Sea Shepherd, ,Whaling, ,Wietse Van Der Werf

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