Sea Shepherd sail against Japanese whalers

Yahoo News 5 Dec 07;

A militant environmental group heading for the Antarctic to confront Japanese whalers renamed one of their ships the "Steve Irwin" Wednesday in honour of Australia's late "crocodile hunter".

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was given permission to use the former TV star's name by his widow Terri, who was in Melbourne to farewell the ship and its 52-member crew as they set sail for the Southern Ocean.

"Whales have always been in Steve's heart and in 2006 he was investigating the possibility of joining the Sea Shepherd on part of its journey to defend these beautiful animals," Terri Irwin told a news conference.

Steve Irwin, a conservationist who became internationally famous for his television shows which featured risky stunts with wild animals, was killed in September 2006 when a stingray barb pierced his chest.

The ship which will carry his name is a 53-metre (174-foot) former Scottish fisheries vessel previously called the "Robert Hunter" after the Canadian co-founder of Greenpeace.

"Steve wanted to come to Antarctica with us to defend the whales, and now he will be joining us in spirit," said Sea Shepherd president Paul Watson.

"Steve Irwin's life demonstrated how one person can make a significant difference in the world."

Japan's annual hunt of the giants of the deep exploits a loophole in a 1986 moratorium that permits limited whaling for scientific purposes, although it is no secret that the meat ends up on supermarket shelves.

Watson, who has threatened in the past to ram Japanese whalers, said last week the ship's crew were prepared to be shot at and would wear body armour when on the bridge.

Watson has compared the Japanese whalers to illegal elephant poachers, while Japanese officials have likened Sea Shepherd to a terrorist group.

Greenpeace is also sending a ship to try to disrupt the hunt but has vowed a "non-violent action" campaign.

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