30 daga til að vernda hvali frá ólöglegum whaeling iðnaður 13MAR14 Íslands

Ísland er illt land. Svo margir fólk hugsa íslensku eru góðir, og eyja þjóð er fallegt og eru ótrúlega fyrir því hvernig þeir hafa skapað nútíma samfélagi meðan þau bjuggu í slíkum erfiðar aðstæður og gera smá skaða á umhverfinu. Svo hvernig er það að svo umhverfisvænt meðvitað og gott fólk þola og jafnvel styðja brot þjóðarinnar síns reglugerðum Alþjóðahvalveiðiráðsins er um hvalveiðar og ólöglegri sölu og viðskipti með svörtum markaði Hvalkjöt? Loks Obama er tilbúinn að taka efnahagslega aðgerða gegn Íslandi svo lengi sem þeir halda áfram að brjóta alþjóðlegar reglur um hvalveiðar. Smelltu á tengilinn til að senda skilaboðin til Pres Obama segja honum að leggja refsa efnahagslegum refsiaðgerðum á hvalveiðum Íslendinga og tengslum atvinnugreinum samkvæmt heimild í Pelly Amendment .....

Íslands hvalveiðar iðnaður heldur áfram að slátra hvali í svörtum markaði hvala  kjöt og afurðir. Segðu President Obama sem við þurfum miða refsiaðgerðir á hvalveiðar fyrirtækja á Íslandi. Yfir 135 útrýmingarhættu langreyðar voru slátrað í fyrra meðfram strönd Íslands -. Bara að fæða sjúkleika auglýsing markaður fyrir hvalkjöti Nú, þökk sé þrýstingur frá nefnd Greenpeace stuðningsmenn eins og þig, Bandaríska ríkisstjórnin hefur loksins talað út opinberlega gegn Íslandi er ólöglegt . hvalveiðar og hefur opnað dyrnar að miða efnahagslegar eða viðskipti refsiaðgerðum gegn hvalveiðar iðnaður Íslands President Obama hefur takmarkaðan tíma til að gera formlegt svar - minna en 30 daga. Við þurfum að sýna að opinber stuðningur er á bak sterkari viðurlög um ólöglegt hvalveiðar fyrirtækja á Íslandi. Við erum að leita að mynda 40.000 opinberar athugasemdir til forseta og við þurfum rödd til að vera einn af þeim. Segðu President Obama að setja sterkari refsiaðgerðir á viðskiptalegum Íslands hvalveiðar - og setja þetta grimmur iðnaður að hvíla vel. Þrátt fyrir bann við alþjóðlegum auglýsing viðskipti, Íslands hvalveiðar iðnaður heldur áfram að flytja ólöglega Hvalkjöt og vörum. Undanfarin diplómatískum refsiaðgerðum hafa ekki verið nóg -  það er kominn tími að við fengum erfiðari. Við höfum minna en 30 daga til að sýna almennan stuðning fyrir hvali og sannfæra Obama forseta til að taka afstöðu gegn félögum sem tengjast illri og ósjálfbær starfi Íslands í hvalveiðar. Klukkan er tjalddúkur. Segðu forseti Obama að það er kominn tími til að vernda hvali í dag. Þetta er ótrúleg tækifæri til að vera meistari í hvali. Með sterkum miða refsiaðgerðum gegn fyrirtækjum bundinn við íslenskum hvalveiðum, fjárstuðning er síðasta auglýsing hvalveiðimenn Íslendinga verði vera farinn - og við getum loksins sett þessa grimmur iðnaður að sofa.  Við höfum stór áform á undan til að vernda hvali og höf okkar árið 2014 - við munum halda áfram að útlistun á svart-markaði Hvalkjöt viðskipti, berjast seismic próf sem gæti skaðað og drepa yfir 100.000 hvalir og höfrungar, og vinna að loka utanríkisþjónustunni skotgat að enda hvalveiðar í eitt skipti fyrir öll. En við þurfum Whale varnarmenn eins og þú á hlið okkar. Vinsamlegast grípa til aðgerða til að vernda hvali í dag. með röddinni, getum við að lokum vinna baráttuna gegn hvalveiðar og stöðva þessa vitlaus slátrun. Fyrir hvali, Phil Kline Greenpeace Senior Oceans campaigner . PS  Við höfum aðeins 30 daga til að sannfæra forseta Obama til staðar miðaðar efnahagslegar refsiaðgerðir á ólöglegum hvalveiðar iðnaður landsins. Segðu forseti Obama að það er kominn tími til að vernda hvali í dag!

30 days to protect whales from Iceland's illegal whaeling industry 13MAR14

 
ICELAND is an evil country. So many people think the Icelandic people are good, and the island nation is beautiful and are amazing for the way they have created a modern society while living in such harsh conditions and doing little harm to the environment. So how is it that such an environmentally conscious and good people tolerate and even support their nation's violations of International Whaling Commission's regulations on whaling and the illegal sale of and trade in black market whale meat? Finally, the Obama administration is ready to take economic action against Iceland as long as they continue to violate international whaling regulations. Click the link to send your message to Pres Obama telling him to impose punishing economic sanctions on Iceland's whaling and associated industries as authorized by the Pelly Amendment.....

Iceland’s whaling industry continues to slaughter whales for black market whale meat and products. Tell President Obama that we need targeted sanctions on Iceland’s commercial whaling companies. Over 135 endangered fin whales were slaughtered last year along the coast of Iceland — just to feed a morbid commercial market for whale meat. Now, thanks to the pressure from committed Greenpeace supporters like you, The US government has finally spoken out publicly against Iceland’s illegal whaling and has opened the door to targeted economic or trade sanctions against Iceland’s commercial whaling industry. President Obama has a limited time to make a formal response — less than 30 days. We need to show that public support is behind stronger sanctions on Iceland’s illegal whaling companies. We're looking to generate 40,000 public comments to the President and we need your voice to be one of them. Tell President Obama to place stronger sanctions on Iceland’s commercial whaling — and put this brutal industry to rest for good. Despite a ban on international commercial trade, Iceland’s whaling industry continues to export illegal whale meat and products. Past diplomatic sanctions have not been enough — it’s time we got tougher. We have less than 30 days to show public support for whales and convince President Obama to take a stand against companies linked to Iceland’s cruel and unsustainable practice of commercial whaling. The clock is ticking. Tell President Obama that it’s time to protect whales today. This is an amazing opportunity to be a champion for the whales. With strong targeted sanctions against the companies tied to Icelandic whaling, financial support for Iceland’s last remaining commercial whalers will be gone — and we can finally put this brutal industry to bed.  We have big plans ahead to protect whales and our oceans in 2014 — we’ll continue exposing the black-market whale meat trade, fight seismic testing that could injure and kill over 100,000 whales and dolphins, and work to close the diplomatic loopholes to end commercial whaling once and for all. But we need Whale Defenders like you on our side. Please take action to protect whales today. With your voice, we can finally win the fight against commercial whaling and stop this senseless slaughter. For the whales, Phil Kline Greenpeace Senior Oceans Campaigner PS. We only have 30 days to convince President Obama to place targeted economic sanctions on Iceland’s illegal commercial whaling industry. Tell President Obama that it’s time to protect whales today!

SEA SHEPHERD E NEWS 19JUL12 & Whaling in Norway 12JUL12

E MAIL news letter from Sea Shepherd covering the continuing detention in Germany and pending extradition to Costa Rica of Captain Paul Watson, illegal Norwegian whaling continues, last months IWC meeting and the threat to the largest humpback whale nursery off the coast of Western Australia. Be sure to read the article Whaling In Norway, an expose of the illegal whaling industry in that supposedly civilized nation....

Dear Friend of Sea Shepherd, Sea Shepherd is about passion. It is about taking risks and giving time, money and materials to save lives on the high seas, to defend the survival of marine species and to protect the integrity of the biodiversity of our ocean, for if biodiversity is diminished the ocean is diminished, and if the ocean dies, we die. We cannot survive on this planet with a dead ocean and the ocean is dying. Our duty, objective and responsibility is to prevent any further diminishment of life and habitat and to take a stand to aggressively and non-violently to make a difference. You are part of that difference when you support us, and you are part of what will protect the oceans and preserve them for future generations. Sea Shepherd Prepares to Defend Largest Humpback Whale Nursery in the World We are launching a new campaign to protect the world's greatest humpback whale nursery, which is under threat due to gas refinery development!  Operation Kimberley Miinimbi will commence this Saturday to call the world’s attention to a proposed gas hub construction in the environmentally sensitive region of James Price Point in Western Australia.  Former Australian Greens Party Senator Bob Brown is leading Operation Kimberley Miinimbi on the Steve Irwin, to try to stop this ill-conceived plan before it’s too late. Get the details... Measures to Protect New Zealand’s Maui’s and Hector’s Dolphin Fall Short at IWC This month’s International Whaling Commission (IWC) meeting was ineffective in establishing much-needed safeguards for the Maui’s and Hector’s Dolphin species, which have seen steady decline in recent decades, primarily due to human-induced threats like gill nets and trawling. The IWC established some so-called “protections” for these majestic creatures, but the measures are only temporary and not far-reaching enough. Read about how your actions can effect REAL change for these imperiled species… July 20 is “Free Capt. Watson” Global Day of Action & Deadline for Visual Petition Contest It’s time the United States steps up to assist one of its citizens. Captain Watson has been under German custody for 67 days on the outrageous, alleged a violation of ship traffic in 2002. German officials have recently determined Captain Watson will indeed be extradited to an uncertain fate to the seemingly lawless nation of Costa Rica. To date, we have received hundreds of entries to our online Visual Petition Contest answering one of the questions, “Why is Captain Watson important to our planet?” or “Why does Sea Shepherd matter to you?” You can see some of those entries below. The deadline for entries is Friday, July 20 at 5 pm PST to coincide with our second “Free Captain Paul Watson” Day of Action. Numerous vigils and protests are planned at German Embassies and Consulates around the world. If you don’t live near an embassy, gather at local parks and private homes to support our modern-day hero. Together we will set him free! We’ve been focusing all of our attention on Germany, but now we would like to request that you please write to US government officials to politely ask for their assistance in gaining Captain Watson’s freedom. We have also provided a new sample letter for you. Don't delay! Whale Wars Season Finale Friday Be sure to catch the last episode in the 5th season of Whale Wars, this Friday, July 20th, on Animal Planet. This season has chronicled our efforts to end whaling in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary during Operation Divine Wind. Learn more about Whale Wars... Handcrafted SSCS Wooden Model Ships Proudly display in your home or office one or more of these scaled, handcrafted, wooden models of the Steve Irwin, Bob Barker, and the Brigitte Bardot as a tribute to our efforts to save whales in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary. A sure collector’s item for any Sea Shepherd supporter! These models are only offered for a limited time, so get yours today before they are gone. All proceeds from the Sea Shepherd e-Stores support our mission to defend ocean wildlife worldwide! There are sacred places in this world that should not be scarred with the ugliness of greed and disrespect for nature. Together we are part of a movement to restore sanity in returning humankind's natural role of living in harmony with other species and the natural world. I wish I could join my crew on the current Operation Requiem campaign and upcoming Operation Kimberley Miinimbi campaign, but I am being held under house arrest in Germany for defending sharks off the coast of Guatemala ten years ago, an incident that has been exploited by Japan and Costa Rica to keep me away from my ships and crew. As many of my enemies have learned time and again — Sea Shepherd is more than myself, and I am happy that because of the passion from people like you we have hundreds of crewmembers in place and multiple ships gearing up or currently operating in defense of marine wildlife worldwide. We know evil prevails when good people do nothing. Thank-you for continuing to support our very important work. Your dedication to our mission is making a difference. For the oceans, Captain Paul Watson Founder and President Sea Shop New! Confessions of an Eco-Terrorist DVD — Special Sea Shepherd Deluxe Edition Campaign Get news straight from the field during our current South Pacific Shark Defense Campaign: Operation Requiem Commentary Whaling in Norway Commentary by Crewmember Erwin Vermeulen Give Events Show your support in person, and join us at a Sea Shepherd event in one of the following areas: Worldwide • Jul 20 - Intl Day of Action Australia • Jul 21 - Brisbane • Jul 22 - Cairns • Jul 22 - Peregian • Jul 28 - Brisbane • Jul 29 - Cairns • Jul 29 - Peregian • Aug 4 - Brisbane • Aug 5 - Cairns • Aug 5 - Peregian • Aug 5 - Canberra Belgium & Netherlands • Jul 21 - Schuttenbergstraat 2, As • Jul 21 - Den Haag • Jul 31 - Brugge • Aug 10 - Glabbeek • Aug 10-12 - Leper • Aug 19 - Meer Brazil • Aug - 18-19 - São Paulo France • Jul 13-19 - Brest • Aug 8 Montpellier • Aug 8 - Couiza • Aug 9 - Lorient Germany • Jul 21 - Iserlohn • Jul 21 - Hanover • Jul 28 - Nuremberg • Aug 2-4 - Waken Open Air • Aug 10-12 - Dresden • Aug 17-19 - Berlin Ireland • Aug 18 - Kildare • Aug 23 - Dublin Italy • Jul 21 - Forte dei Marmi • Jul 21 - Arona North America • Jul 27-29 - Seattle, WA • Jul 30 - Denver, CO • Aug 4 - Dallas, TX • Aug 4 - Friday Hbr, WA • Aug 6 - Clarksville, MD • Aug 11 - Los Angeles, CA • Aug 15 - Oakland, CA United Kingdom • Jul 27 - Surrey • Aug 16 - Isle of Wight Video Sea Shepherd Australian Director Jeff Hansen and former Greens Senator Bob Brown share their thoughts on Op Kimberley Miinimbi Watch now! Join the DAC Our Direct Action Crew donors are a significant part of what keeps our ships at sea and our campaigns successful! Join the DAC with your monthly or quarterly gift and as a token of our appreciation we'll send you a free Sea Shepherd Direct Action Crew t-shirt and a discount code for 20% off in our e-Stores. Follow Us Remove My Name from Future Mailings | Privacy Policy Sea Shepherd Conservation Society P.O. Box 2616, Friday Harbor, WA 98250 USA (USA) Tel: 360-370-5650 Fax: 360-370-5651   Share on Facebook Not on our list? Sign up for the Sea Shepherd e-News!      July 12, 2012 Whaling in Norway Commentary by Erwin Vermeulen The whale-killing ship, Reinefangst - photo: Erwin VermeulenYou can’t say Spitsbergen is unspoiled. The massacres perpetrated by the Dutch and other European countries since the 17th century made sure that even now the once plentiful Bowhead whale is rarely spotted among these islands in the Arctic. There are beaches here, full of the bleached and weathered skulls and bones of hundreds of slaughtered belugas, and the walrus was almost hunted to local extinction.  Still it is the scenic beauty and remaining wildlife that today attracts thousands of tourists to these snow-covered peaks jutting from the cold waters. You would think that mankind and especially Norway, that governs these isles under the geo-political name of Svalbard, would have drawn lessons from that ignorant, destructive past and that the tourist money would be an extra incentive to protect all that is left…Not so! There are still hunting seasons here, still arctic foxes are being trapped for their fur and, yes, the whaling continues. Therefore, it was hardly a surprise when I sailed into Hornsund in the South West of Spitsbergen last month, to find in that bay the whale poachers Ann-Brita and Reinefangst with their murderous harpoons uncovered. Even though it has been almost two decades since Sea Shepherd and the Norwegian whale poachers met steel to steel, that does not mean we do not keep track of what they are up to. Over the last decade we have seen the number of boats partaking in the slaughter dwindle to 21 licensed vessels this year. Some are giving up because of the lack in demand for whale meat; others saw their ships sunk in their homeports. We witnessed the struggle of the poachers to fill the quotas, variously blaming fuel costs, bad weather and distance to the whaling grounds for their failures. Still Norway has killed almost 10.000 whales since the moratorium came into effect in 1986. Although Norway is a member of the IWC, it does not abide by that body’s decisions. In 1982, it filed a formal objection against the proposed ban on commercial whaling. The insane rules of this ineffective and corrupt organization basically say that if you don’t like their rulings, you can object and just on the basis of that objection you are not bound by these rulings. Norway has also exempted itself from the trade bans imposed by another ineffective and corrupt organization, namely CITES, and exports whale meat to Japan. Norway tried their hand at Japanese-style, scientific whaling for a brief period before returning in 1993 to overtly commercial whaling. They peaked in 2005 with 639 whales and last year took the lives of 533 animals. The Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries and Coastal affairs has set the quota for the 2012 season that lasts from May 1st to August 30th, again at 1286 Minke whales. Besides ignoring the moratorium on commercial whaling, Norway sets much higher catch limits than even the IWC’s ‘scientific’ calculations (A system ominously called Revised Management Procedure (RMP)) allow for. On top of that, Norway has allowed catches to be concentrated in areas most convenient for the poachers, especially the area West of Spitsbergen. Still the poachers fail to meet even half of their quota. So to placate them even further and in complete disregard for the fate of the whales the government has this year merged two separate whaling zones to make it more cost-effective for the poachers to concentrate their killing business on the waters around Spitsbergen. The whaling apologists in the Norwegian government have thus made a joke of the already much prostituted word ‘sustainability’. Of course, if that cliché doesn’t hold up there are always other excuses, like blaming whales for eating the fishermen’s fish. Haven’t we heard similar cries from the Japanese whaling industry, from the seal and sea lion clubbers in Newfoundland and Namibia, from the dolphin killers in Taiji, from the fishery agencies in Chile and from the officials at the Bonneville dam, to draw the attention away from the real problem: overfishing by man? Just as preposterous are the tiresome, old arguments of tradition and culture, used around the world to justify brutality and cruelty and to repeat, over and over again, the mistakes of the past. One official even claimed that Norwegian whaling could be considered aboriginal. Nothing on the diesel-powered, steel ships, full of modern, electronic equipment and with explosive-grenade harpoons on their bow that I met in these waters, struck me as aboriginal or traditional. As everywhere where senseless slaughter takes place, you can smell the greed, the stubbornness, the misplaced national pride and the willful ignorance. It should not be tolerated in the Europe of today. The whale-killing ship, Ann-Brita photo: Erwin Vermeulen Explosive tip harpoon on the bow of the Ann-Brita - photo: Erwin Vermeulen 91

Japan Unleashes a Tsunami of Muscle Against Sea Shepherd 9DEZ11

JAPAN begins it's illegal and immoral whaling season, sending their fleet (subsidized with tsunami relief funds) to the Southern Ocean to brutally slaughter whales that are supposed to be protected by international law. The only protection the whales get is from the good and brave people of Sea Shepherd, who have launched Operation Divine Wind to save as many whales from the Japanese as possible. Check this out from Sea Shepherd, and when you donate to them you can be sure your money will go to to the cause, unlike donations made to the Japanese Tsunami Relief Fund....
File photo: Japanese Coast Guard personnel hurl flash bang grenades during Operation Migaloo
in 2008 Armed Security ships, mercenary thugs, Coast Guard officers, heavy weight public relations firms, and lawyers!
Thirty million dollars buys a great deal of influence and can exert immense pressure when defending an illegal activity.
In an act of desperation, the Japanese whalers armed with a war chest of some $US30 million allocated by the Japanese government from the tsunami earthquake relief fund are throwing a great deal of muscle into their efforts to stop the Sea Shepherd ships from saving whales this season.
The latest move has the Japanese whalers filing a lawsuit in a U.S. Court to prohibit Sea Shepherd from intervening against illegal Japanese whaling operations. Sea Shepherd dismisses this suit as frivolous and nothing more than the whalers attempting to use litigation as a weapon against Sea Shepherd.
“We have won this round already,” said Captain Paul Watson. "Last season we defeated the whalers and sent them home in humiliation after they were only able to kill 17% of their quota. This year will be more challenging. Thirty million dollars buys a great deal of influence and we are expecting a full onslaught of harassment and bureaucratic obstacles from Japan and from the governments, courts and media they are able to influence.
“It will be a challenging season and the most dangerous campaign to date as we head down for our eighth year of interventions against the whale poachers of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.”
Sea Shepherd is undeterred by this latest attempt to stop us in the U.S. Courts.
“This seems like a frivolous lawsuit to me,” said Captain Watson. “We have the images of the Japanese whalers destroying one of our ships, ramming our ships, running over our crew, firing upon us, throwing concussion grenades, deploying acoustical weapons, hitting us with water cannons and bamboo spears and they are suing us because they are accusing us of violence towards them. We have not rammed them and we have not caused a single injury nor have we been charged with a crime or even reprimanded by anyone for our actions. We have cooperated with every inquiry. They have not. This is simply a case of using the courts to harass us. I don’t believe they have a case and I doubt a U.S. court would take this seriously. Unlike Japan, the courts in the United States don’t automatically do what the government demands that they do.”
Sea Shepherd has more important issues to address than being distracted by lawsuits. “Our entire focus for the next three months will be on preventing the ruthless and illegal slaughter of whales in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary,“ said Captain Watson. “We will not be deterred by force, by lawsuits, by bureaucrats, by critics or by any government. We act non-violently within the boundaries of the law and we save whales from a criminal operation in a whale sanctuary.”
All this muscle is simply the last gasp of a dying, ecologically destructive and ruthless industry. Sea Shepherd will never abandon the whales of the Southern Ocean no matter how heavy handed the Japanese whalers become. The only way they will stop us is to kill us and they may be just desperate enough to do just that.”

Whale Warrior “Captain Pete Bethune” Free to Return Home 6JUL10

THE video at the end of this post shows the japanese ship turning to hit the Ady Gil, proof of guilt of attempted murder and the destruction of private property. Check out Whale Wars on Animal Planet to see the brave Sea Shepherds in action, go to their website by clicking the header or going to the link on this blog.

On January 6, 2010, Captain Hiroyuki Komura of the illegal Japanese whaling vessel the Shonan Maru #2 deliberately rammed and destroyed Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s vessel, the Ady Gil. Captain Komura almost killed six Sea Shepherd volunteer crewmembers and did not respond to the Ady Gil’s mayday distress signal. Japanese authorities refused to cooperate in investigations and declined requests by Australian and New Zealand maritime authorities to question Captain Komura.
Instead, Captain Peter Bethune, the man who Captain Komura almost killed and whose ship was destroyed, was taken back to Japan literally as a prisoner of war abducted from the waters of the Australian Antarctic Territory. Captain Bethune was incarcerated for boarding the ship that had rammed and destroyed his ship, when he had every right to board that vessel to confront Captain Komura face-to-face for his crimes.
Captain Komura should have been the man on trial. He was not, because in the waters of the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary, might—rather than the law—makes right, and Captain Bethune was taken back to Japan to be made an example of and persecuted for defending the whales.
The verdict of the Japanese court was always to be “guilty.” Sea Shepherd was never under any illusion that Captain Bethune would be given a fair trial. In court, there was no discussion of the reason why Captain Bethune boarded the Shonan Maru #2, and Captain Komura was not called as a witness; in short, the court never allowed any evidence of the Ady Gil’s destruction to be heard.
Sea Shepherd spent in excess of half a million U.S. dollars on Captain Bethune’s defense, not because we believed he would be acquitted, but in an attempt to mitigate his sentence.
Captain Bethune was facing up to fifteen years in prison. He was sentenced to two years and he will be deported back to New Zealand on July 9th with his sentence suspended.
Captain Bethune’s mission was successful. His efforts helped save the lives of 528 whales. He was able to take one of the harpoon vessels off the hunt when it was forced to return him to Japan. Most importantly, he exposed the brutality and illegality of the Japanese whaling fleet to the world. When you’re willing to risk your life to save the whales, five months as a Japanese prisoner is a good trade-off for the lives saved.
Captain Bethune is a hero to the Save the Whales movement and he will be welcomed home to New Zealand as a national hero for having the courage to do what his government was fearful of doing—defending whales from the Japanese poachers in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary.  
Global support for Captain Bethune and negative publicity about Japan’s whaling program has led to this success.  With Captain Bethune, the Japanese government was well aware that each day it held him would be a day that would generate protest against its abominable whale slaughter.  This fact, coupled with protests over the showing of the Academy Award winning film “The Cove,” has helped to make the whale and dolphin slaughter the most embarrassing foreign affairs issue currently scandalizing the Japanese government.
The Japanese court acknowledged that Captain Bethune never intended to hurt anyone and was operating under his conviction to save whales from illegal whaling.  The truth is that Japan wants Captain Bethune out of Japan and with the sentence suspended they can quickly send him home.
Sea Shepherd is proud of Captain Bethune’s achievements and satisfied with the results of this ridiculous trial that saw a man incarcerated for saving the lives of whales, yet ignored the crimes of a Japanese poacher who sank a ship and almost killed six conservationists.
Captain Bethune is free, and that is what matters. Sea Shepherd is free to return to the Southern Ocean again to defend the whales, and we intend to be even more effective next season than during our last highly effective season.
Captain Bethune is an inspiration in courage and dedication, and his efforts, his sacrifice, and his resolve will not be forgotten.

VICTORY OF SORTS AT THE IWC CONFERENCE IN MOROCCO 24JUN10

We did it! Thanks to YOU, the Obama Administration kept its promise to save whales at the International Whaling Commission (IWC) talks. As a result, the IWC was unable to lift the ban on commercial whaling! As I sat in a stuffy meeting room in Agadir, Morocco with delegates and representatives from other nations, I knew I wasn’t alone in working to help save the whales. I had more than 1.5 million passionate people, like YOU, with me there in spirit supporting the whales and standing up to tell the President that they deserve to be saved, not slaughtered. While the gathering nations failed to implement new plans for whale conservation, I’m pleased that our President and his team stood their ground in the end, thanks to your efforts. This year, the best we could do was preventing the IWC from rolling back protections for whales. Next year, we need to apply even more pressure so the IWC will close dangerous loopholes that have allowed Japan, Iceland, and Norway to continue killing whales. Thank you for all your support. The whales are breathing a big sigh of relief! For the whales, Phil Kline Oceans Campaigner
	Oceans Campaigner	YOU DID IT! I have fantastic news: the International Whaling Commission (IWC) announced yesterday that it is delaying action on a deal that would have legalized commercial whaling for the first time in a generation. The IWC’s decision is a huge victory for whales -- and for activists like you -- against very long odds. And it was made possible by more than 100,000 NRDC Members and BioGems Defenders like you who helped ignite a worldwide outcry against this potentially disastrous policy change. Just weeks ago, Pierce Brosnan kicked off NRDC’s public mobilization campaign by alerting you to this deadly deal and asking you to make your voice heard in opposition. At that time, an end to the ban on whaling seemed virtually inevitable. The deal had been negotiated for years in secret, closed-door meetings. The talks were spearheaded by key governments, including our own, which believed that lifting the ban on whaling would rein in rogue whaling by Japan, Iceland and Norway. But, in fact, the proposed deal was a capitulation to the whaling nations, conferring legitimacy on their slaughter of whales after they’d defied international law for years. The deal would have suspended the whaling ban for 10 years and opened up a designated whale sanctuary to commercial whaling. And it would not have put binding measures in place to stop whaling nations from killing whales under legal loopholes like “scientific permits.” Worst of all, the deal would have given moral cover to the notion that we can save whales by killing them -- instead of by banning their slaughter. Fortunately, a worldwide outcry helped halt this headlong rush to legalize the slaughter of whales for profit. It shone a spotlight on the secret proceedings and put pressure on anti-whaling nations -- like the United States -- to toughen their stance in negotiating with the whaling nations. That last-minute shift produced a whale-saving deadlock. This fight is not yet over. The IWC has left the proposed deal open on its agenda, meaning that it could be revisited in the next two days. More likely, the IWC will opt for a year-long “cooling-off period” and take up the issue again next year. We’ll be ready to mobilize again whenever this proposed deal is put back on the table. In the weeks and months ahead, we’ll be urging the IWC to focus its conservation efforts on emerging threats to marine mammals that are growing with each passing day: from entanglement to ship strikes, from noise pollution to global warming. In the meantime, I want to thank you for helping secure this important victory for whales -- and for making sure that the slaughter of whales for profit will remain illegal. Sincerely,   Peter Lehner Executive Director Natural Resources Defense Council