Editorial: No-one wins in whale clashes

OPINION: The Antarctic ocean is no place for a game of "chicken".

But that is what transpired on January 6 when the 491-tonne Japanese whaling vessel Shonan Maru 2 collided with Ady Gil, the high-tech Kiwi boat recruited by conservation group Sea Shepherd for its annual whaling protest.

Helmed by former Hamiltonian Peter Bethune, the 13-tonne Ady Gil was lucky not to be sunk immediately when hit by the Japanese "bodyguard" ship protecting the whaling fleet on its annual harvest. More fortuitously, no-one on the conservation craft was killed.

Crew members have filed attempted murder complaints with New Zealand police, and a piracy suit has been laid in the Netherlands (one Ady Gil crewman is Dutch, and it is where Sea Shepherd's main ship is registered.)

Videos of the collision paint an unclear picture of who was at fault. One aspect is obvious: the two groups are virtually at war.

Using ropes to entangle propellers and laser lights to disrupt the whalers' operations, Sea Shepherd has also been accused of piracy. The group's methods draw criticism, and have previously included sinking whaling boats.

The Japanese, under the banner of the Institute for Cetacean Research, defiantly continue their annual hunt for more than 1000 mainly minke whales.

It is an horrific practice and the giant mammals' deaths by grenade-tipped harpoons can take up to an hour. Under the auspices of the International Whaling Commission, this remains legal, but many believe it is a front for the Japanese whale meat market.

It is a market apparently in freefall, with both demand and prices reportedly dropping over the last decade.

Whale meat has been removed from supermarkets and is stockpiled in Tokyo freezers, sought only by a few restaurants.

In recent years the Japanese have not met their full whale quota, a result of conservationists' successful efforts.

Through its location and passion for the marine environment, New Zealand has a small but significant role here. Our opposition to whaling is no secret, and Ady Gil was a New Zealand-registered boat.

The collision came just days after hundreds of holiday-makers battled for a day to save a large pod of pilot whales which beached at Colville. There is a strong affinity between whales and Maori.

There was little initial action from the New Zealand Government to the Southern Ocean clashes: Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully voiced his concern, and received an angry letter from a Japanese counterpart.

Prime Minister John Key this week said whaling would be discussed when he met with US Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, and would strive to find a diplomatic solution.

It is desperately needed. Neither Sea Shepherd nor the whalers show any sign of backing off. The death of a whaler, or more likely an activist, seems imminent.

That would mean more than the blood of whales tainting the Southern Ocean. That would do neither side credit.

- © Fairfax NZ News