Responding to Whale Killers

Responding to Whale Killers



March 2008 

In Africa, Somali poachers are shot on sight for poaching elephants and the 
world approves. In India, Indian poachers are shot for poaching tigers. 
Yet when the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society crew tosses rotten butter 
onto the deck of a wealthy high-tech Japanese whale poaching vessel in the 
Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, there is a gasp of horror from those who 
fear to offend the great economic bully from Asia. 
The crew of the Steve Irwin did not injure anyone. The entire 
confrontation was documented by both ships and there has been no video 
shown by either side documenting violent actions against the very violent 
whalers. 
Sea Shepherd even offered to send its medical doctor onboard the Nisshin 
Maru to treat the alleged injuries and to confirm the claim that there 
were any injuries at all. The Nisshin Maru denied the request. 

Crew of the Sea Shepherd vessel Steve Irwin toss containers of 
butyric acid onto the Japanese whaler Nisshin Maru. March 3, 2008. 

The reaction in some media outlets leads one to think the Japanese whalers 
are the innocent victims of a horrific act of violence. Yet these same 
whalers are violating international conservation law and an Australian 
Federal Court order by illegally slaughtering endangered whales in an 
established whale sanctuary. 
The Sea Shepherd crew did not shoot any of these poachers like the rangers 
in Africa would when they encounter elephant killers in the bush. They 
tossed rotten butter and fake banana peels onto their deck to discourage 
their illegal operations [on March 3]. 
The material tossed onto the deck of the Nisshin Maru was both organic and 
non-toxic. The Japanese whalers are spinning the story describing butter 
acid as caustic and harmful when it is completely harmless. Not all acids 
are harmful and some just smell bad. It is a fact that butter becomes 
Butyric acid when it goes bad. That does not make it toxic, just 
obnoxiously smelly. 
Sea Shepherd's objective in tossing a foul smelling substance onto the 
deck of the largest floating slaughterhouse in the world is simple - to 
discourage the grisly work of mutilating the bodies of some of the largest 
and gentlest creatures on Earth. 
There is no industry on earth as horrifically violent as whaling. Whales 
die in prolonged unimaginable agony as blunt tipped harpoons smash into 
their backsides and shred internal organs. They may take up to 40 minutes 
to die as they drown in a mixture of salt water and their own blood. They 
thrash and roll on the surface of the sea and scream piteously as they 
look up to see arrogant men gloating over their suffering. 
Yet, some people get upset because these same people now have smelly decks 
and can't continue their foul sadistic work. 
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's clients are the whales and the 
crew defend them by intervening to enforce international conservation law 
in accordance to the principles established by the United Nations World 
Charter for Nature. 

Sea Shepherd has not committed any crime. Despite the fabrications of 
Japanese public relations spin doctors, Sea Shepherd has not injured 
anyone. In fact in over 30 years of high seas interventions the Sea 
Shepherd Conservation Society has never caused an injury nor been 
convicted of a felony. Yet in that time whalers, sealers, shark finners, 
turtle poachers and illegal fishermen have assaulted, beaten, bloodied, 
rammed, shot at and threatened Sea Shepherd crew members' lives. 
Sea Shepherd has had a very successful campaign this year in the Southern 
Ocean Whale Sanctuary. Hundreds of whales have been saved. 
The Steve Irwin has chased this Japanese killing fleet for thousands of 
miles and they will not fill their death quota and they are not very happy 
about it. 
The crew of the Sea Shepherd ship Steve Irwin are satisfied that they have 
behaved responsibly, that they have not injured anyone, and that they did 
not damage any property. They are satisfied that they have saved lives, 
hundreds of lives of the most social complex, gentle and intelligent 
creatures in the sea. 
Sea Shepherd did their planetary duty and upheld the law and all of the 
crew on this gallant ship are both proud and satisfied at what has been 
accomplished.

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