Sea Shepherd 'sank its own anti-whaling boat'

[Lars77]

Source: BBC

An estranged former member of direct action anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd alleges it ordered its own boat to be scuttled to win public sympathy.

Peter Bethune was captain of the hi-tech Ady Gil when its bow was shorn off in a collision with a Japanese whaler it was shadowing in January.

It sank two days later, but Mr Bethune now alleges he was ordered to scuttle it by Sea Shepherd head Paul Watson.
Mr Watson denies the claim - the latest twist in a bitter row between the two.

Commentators say the feud threatens to undermine the standing of the anti-whaling lobby in the publicity battle over Japan's whaling programme.

Read more: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-pacific-11490958

[Teaser]

1. I don't think Sea Shepherd ever denied this

He was ordered to scuttle the boat. The captain thought it was too damaged too be useful and leaving it afloat was a hazard to shipping lanes. He wanted to get on with the business of harassing whalers.

This was documented on Whale Wars.

Where's the conflict?

[kristopher]

5. Where is the conflict?

Mr Bethune {said}... he believed Mr Watson wanted the sinking to "garner sympathy with the public and to create better TV. ...I was ashamed of it at the time and I'm ashamed of it now."

But Mr Watson denied the allegations, saying Mr Bethune was bitter because he had fallen out with Sea Shepherd.

Seems like a pretty clear example of a conflict to me.

[Teaser]

6. no I mean..

Where don't their statements jibe about the actual events? As far as I can see, they agree on exactly *what* happened. Bethune and Watson *disagree* on the motives behind it. Each is imputing bad motives to the other, but how the hell does Pete know what Watson was thinking, or vice versa?

In any event, the argument is irrelevant. The boat had already been split in two before the decision to scuttle it. I'm not sure scuttling it garnered any additional sympathy.

[kristopher]

11. Since he was there participating in the event, I'd guess Watson told him.

[harvey007]

37. I sensed there was a riff

After seeing Paul Watson's body language on the Larry King program, I was concerned there was some dispute.

If there are hard feelings, those guys need to get over it, patch things up, and get on with saving the whales.

[Teaser]

49. Bethune was very attached to that boat

I understand the hard feelings. It was his masterpiece. But you're right. This is a stupid sideshow.

[RaleighNCDUer]

14. He could have even said something like

"We better sink it. At least it will get us some sympathy from the public." I think that would be a very natural reaction - making the best of a really bad situation. It's not like he deliberately sunk a salvageable boat just for the publicity.

[Chan790]

20. They didn't deny it, but it was Bethune that made the decison to scuttle.

Not Watson or Bob Barker captain Chuck Swift. That's documented and it's on film.

Bethune is banned from future membership or participation in SSCS actions because he broke rules on more-than-one occasion regarding conduct, he brought a weapon on-board when the rules regarding involvement in SSCS campaigns forbid it and committed perjury.

If you want to see what kind of person Bethune is, the entire email exchange between Bethune and Watson is publicly-available. I'd say though that his credibility is just about shit.

The exchange as posited by Watson: http://www.seashepherd.org/news-and-media/news-101005-2.html

The exchange as posited by Bethune is available on his facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/TAMARADREWEUSA#!/pete.bethune

[Bonobo]

2. Ooops, I misread it.

Self-delete.

[RaleighNCDUer]

3. Bethune was charged with 'interfering with commercial activities'?

But I thought the Japanese whaling was scientific, not commercial. Isn't that what they claim?

[pasto76]

7. yeah, that was the whole point of Pete boarding

and likely why he received suspended sentence and sent home.

[time_has_come]

4. No surprise there. Watson has made dishonesty one of his weapons.

Very unfortunate...but he certainly doesn't see anything wrong with lying for short term PR gain.

In the end, though, the cause that he cares about so much will suffer.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Bodhi BloodWave]

13. Are you saying that Watson hasn't been lying and using deception to try and promote his view? n/t

[kristopher]

15. By that type logic you must be a supporter of the Somali pirates.

Why do you want to use such nonsense as a talking point? Watson is doing nothing but hardening the Japanese position on whaling. Not too long ago the Liberal Democratic Party there completely lost power for the first time in 6 decades.
It would have been a GREAT time to move the Japanese on the position of ending their whaling, but Watson's antics gave the right wing all the support they needed to solidify public opinion AGAINST accommodating the the West.

[Godhumor]

17. "Jap" Whalers?

Seriously?

[Name removed]

8. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[pasto76]

9. yeah I dont think there is much about this statement

I know Pete is pissed at Watson - and watson routinely comes off as a complete assclown - but with that sized breach in the hull, in the open ocean, the boat is going to sink sooner or later.

[Larkspur]

12. The first storm they hit would have ripped it of the tow line and sunk it

They were too far away from land to tow it back to port.

[madrchsod]

16. the boat was going to sink ...

much to do about nothing...

[DirkGently]

18. Pinhead dance routine. Japanese rammed and destroyed the Ady Gil. Its sinking has no bearing at all.

[flvegan]

19. Is this the same Pete Bethune that lied in Japanese court about Watson

to gain leniency? Is this the same disgraceful activist that defied the suggestions of the Captain to go ashore so that he could confront the captain of the ship he boarded?

Rumor has it that this same fella is bucking for his own reality show. Tsk tsk, Pete.

[me b zola]

23. I never liked nor trusted Pete

I always thought that he was a mole

[Hassin Bin Sober]

26. Me neither. Not to mention his henchmen who threw a fit when they couldn't get off the ship ...

... at their convenience.

I don't think he was a mole. Just a self promoting d-bag.

[blackspade]

21. So what?

The fact is that the Ady Gil was rammed by a japanese whaling ship.
It sank due to the bow being sliced off.
Whether it was helped to the bottom after the ramming doesn't matter. It was going to sink anyway.

This is manufactured controversy by the MSM pro-whaling crowd.

[slackmaster]

22. Did they try to collect on an insurance policy for loss of the vessel?

I don't believe so.

[ZombieHorde]

24. Does Whale Wars expose racism, or create racism?

I wonder if racism against Japanese people would as prevalent on DU is Whale Wars did not exist.

[Bonobo]

25. What an excellent question.

In my opinion, it certainly creates racism.

To many here, the most significant fact about Japan in their lives, the only way it relates to their lives, is with regards to this issue.

I live in Japan. My children and wife are Japanese.

To me, it is a tiny, tiny speck of news in a huge country with so many great things. The way they are, the way they treat each other.

It is sad, but I think this show creates a terrible amount of hatred.

[1monster]

30. Disagree. This isn't about racism. About the Japanese GOVERNMENT'S defiance

against international war? Yes.

But it has been reported repeatedly that the Japanese, as a people, don't really care for whale meat; that the government is dumping whale meat on the schools in order to foster a taste for whale meat on the children in order to create a future market for whale meat.

it may create nationalism in the Japanese community especially when the government spins every happening as an attack on the Japanese, but it isn't about racism on the part of SSCS. It's about saving whales and enforcing international laws (something no one else seems to want to do).

What is very interesting is how the whale wars exposes so many people who post on a "progressive" message board as having a very callous, cavalier attitude toward whales (and maybe other animals of a different species). Perhaps a different kind of "racism."

[ZombieHorde]

47. Then why do some DUers use the phrase, "Jap whalers?"

Why do some posters say whaling by other races is fine?

Why don't more DUers speak out against white people whaling?

[1monster]

52. Some people are racist, regardless of Whale Wars and use any excuse

to display their racism.

As for why Japan is at the top level of critism, I suggest you read this article on the National Geographic web site: Why Is Japan Whaling's Bogeyman When Norway Hunts Too? http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2008/06/080627-japan-whaling.html

"Japanese people feel that, yes, maybe there is a little bit of racism in the way in which we are considered in comparison with the way Norway or other whaling nations are treated," said Noriko Hama, a professor of economics at Doshisha University in Kyoto.

"If Japan continues whaling, we're 'barbarians.' But at the same time, I think Japan is giving its critics the excuse to level those accusations, because the government is simply not coming clean on its whaling policy," she said. (snip)


Environmentalists and some anti-whaling governments accuse Japan, for instance, of trying to reverse the commercial hunting ban by buying the voting support of poorer nations. (snip)

Whaling countries such as Norway and Iceland confine whaling to coastal regions inside their own waters, but Japan is the only nation that still exploits Antarctic seas, now an internationally recognized sanctuary for whales. snip

The article goes on to discuss the differing views of environmental groups regarding subsistance whaling by aboriginals and how Norway and Iceland use Japan as a flak-catcher.

This is an even-handed article regarding Japan's Bogeyman status as compared to Norway, Iceland, Aboriginals, etc., and well-worth the read.

[DirkGently]

32. Disagree. Condemning Japanese whaling isn't racist just b/c Japanese whalers are Japanese.

[Dappleganger]

39. I disagree.

Your perception of the show is skewed. Whale Wars is about stopping illegal whaling, period. There is no racism on the show, they don't call them names or single them out due to their ethnicity. If it wasn't for the names on the ships or the names of the governments, one would hardly know there were Japanese on board. People in the US are quite enamored with Japan's culture in so many strong ways, but this whale issue is something which has been swept under the rug for far too long and it is high time to shut it down for good.

[Larkspur]

27. I'm against killing whales and have been donating to Sea Shepherd before their

exploits were televised.

The only exception I'll make for killing whales is for the Inuits and tribes in the Artic region, who hunt them for sustenance.

[Larkspur]

28. These whalers also sell their mercury poisoned meat to schools

Mostly to the schools that serve their poorest children.

Greed transcends race.

[quakerboy]

36. Is racism against japan prevalent on DU?

Generally, what reference I see to them is economic (Wanting to learn lessons from their health care system or the lost decade) or to do with the auto industry.

The whaling thing comes up periodically as well, but I would say the Japanese government is on the wrong side of that. Opposing a wrong activity perpetuated by a government for political reasons, I do not believe can be so simply called racist.

Its not quite the same, but are we racist against the Congolese if we oppose the proliferation of blood diamonds? Is DU racist against Americans if we oppose our foreign policy in the middle east over oil?

[ZombieHorde]

46. Many DUers don't post about how much they dislike whalers, they post how much they

dislike Japanese whalers, or in some cases, "Jap whalers." Some Duers even admit they are OK with other races whaling, such as the Inuits.

[quakerboy]

50. I feel safe in

assuming that most of the people here dislike whaling dislike it no matter who is doing it. It just so happens that Japan is in the focus at the moment. I betcha if you could get a reality show based on antagonizing Icelandic whalers, you would get the same people posting their support for the effort. I do not for one second believe whoever made the "jap whaler" comment is representative of most of us who think that the killing of whales is wrong, any more than I believe the "new black panthers" are representative of the Democratic Party.

As to the to the other mention, I suspect scale and type come into play, as well as knowledge. If I had not looked it up, I would assume that the the Inuits do not take many. between various countries, they do account for several hundred a year, which is disturbing. And I could see that if it were done as a historical cultural thing, Some could be ok with that. I am not, but I can understand the idealistic romantic idea of a primative Nordic hunt done with the historic tools.

This bears little resemblance to the commercial whaling boat with powerful motors and all sorts of technological advantages that we see on the TV. And I suspect that the view of the activities of Greenland or Norway would be no better. But they are not the foremost commercial fishers of Whales, so they are not getting the attention. I betcha if you donated enough money, Sea Shepherd would be happy to start a similar action, complete with Reality TV show in those areas of the world. And I betcha the vast majority, if not all of us here would have the same reaction toward those doing it.

[wordpix]

43. This DUer is not racist but I'll be happy to boycott Japanese products until Japan ends whaling

Nothing to do with the "Japanese" race, just their whaling. "Research"---yeah, right.

[ZombieHorde]

45. Are you going to boycott the other whaling countries as well? nt

[wordpix]

60. yes - however, I don't personally buy anything from Norway, Iceland or Greenland

I DO own a Japanese car and a Sony computer. I wouldn't buy another ANYTHING from Japan.

As for the US allowing native "subsistence" whaling, I say the natives should do it in a subsistence way---make their own kayaks and bone tools like they used to, make their own sealskin suits and kayak skirt, etc. Don't tell me it's subsistence when they're using modern technology to kill whales. Ditto for those doing "research" by locating and killing whales with modern ships and tech.

[onenote]

29. a split between watson and bethune was inevitable

At the outset, let me note that my wife and I have been contributing to Sea Shepherd for years and intend to continue to do so. However, it is well documented, not only in the Whale Wars series, but also through other first hand accounts, that Watson can be a loose cannon whose campaigns are often marked by poor planning and preparation and sloppy execution. Moreover, Watson is quick to claim credit for success, but frequently ducks responsibility for mishaps, looking to pin blame on others, including volunteers.

That said, Pete Bethune exhibits some of the same characteristics. Consequently, it seems inevitable that the two ultimately would clash.

[1monster]

31. I've only watched about four or five episodes of Whale Wars (all on the same day --

my son was watching a marathon).

I watched the episodes from the Ally Gil being rammed up to, but not including Bethune's landing on the Japanese ship.

In retrospect, it seemed to me that Bethune was using the SSCS to gain fame, perhaps with the aim to supplanting Watson as the main name behind the Sea Shepherd. Sort of an inside takeover.

Both men have

humongous egos

which were bound to clash big time sooner or later.

[CJvR]

34. One...

One loose cannon on the deck keeps things lively, two lose cannons make things a bit to lively.

Still I don't get what the big problem was, unless the editing in WW have been very creative it seemed as if it was Pete's own decission to abandon the towing effort.

[DirkGently]

35. Agree on all counts. I support SS in spite of Watson's, erm, "colorful" personality.

[wordpix]

42. +1 at least SS is DOING something - cannot say the same for IWC nations who

look the other way when Japan slaughters whales for "research."

[wordpix]

33. I doubt Watson would have given the order to sink Ady Gil

Maybe the order was to harass the hell out of the Shonun Maru and deal with the consequences later.

[TexasObserver]

38. Peter Bethune is an idiot who should never be in charge of anything.

He managed to run out of water and fuel while commanding the Ady Gil, and was sitting there dead in the water when his vessel was hit. He's completely incompetent.

The entire operation is run by amateurs who have their hearts in the right place, but their heads in the wrong place.

[Dappleganger]

40. He certainly is...

glad it's not just me who noticed how foolish he was to be so ill-prepared.

[TexasObserver]

44. How does he dock with the larger vessel and forget to get WATER?

They ran out of water once.

Then he forgot to refuel when they met up with the larger vessel.

How incompetent does one have to be to forget to obtain water and fuel at sea?

I have watched many episodes of the show, and generally support their efforts and goals, but it's Amateur Hour on there. It's a bunch of well meaning people who do not know what they're doing. The best strategem, IMO, is the use of undersea whale calls that are warnings of danger. Getting the whales to move away from the vessels is the best way to keep them safe. This harassing of the big whaling vessels accomplishes almost nothing.

Find them, follow them, and use the whale warnings to save whales. They wouldn't need huge vessels for that. They could send more vessels and cover more territory.

[Devil_Fish]

51. it is my understanding that the transfer of fuel inside the whale sanctuary is prohibited,

and is one of the crimes that the Sea Shepard accuse the whalers of committing. The Addy Gil was ill prepared for the mission. The result may have been what Bethune had in mind all along.

From the stand point of COL REGS the Whaling vessel was both overtaking and to port of the Addy Gil which puts the obligation on the whalers to stay clear of the Addy Gil which they quite obviously did not.

Taking all of that into consideration, Bethune could not have set up his boat for the collision better. The fact that this blatant running down of the Addy Gil was allowed to go not only un-punished, but also un-questioned leads me to conclude that the Sea Shepard should simply get a bigger, faster boat, and ram the Whalers from the starboard side of course, sinking their vessel and just simply say, "they got in our way as we were whale watching, Whoops, these things happen."

[TexasObserver]

53. Yes, the Ady Gil was ill prepared for the mission.

I have watched the incident over and over, to better understand what happened.

The Ady Gil got in front of the whaling vessel a distance of a mile or so, I'd guesstimate. It stopped very close to the course the whaling vessel was on. Bethune and others sat up on the deck, watching the approaching Japanese whaling ship.

As the Japanese vessel approached, it turned into the Ady Gil. There is no mistake about it. They intended to hit the Ady Gil. Bethune stopping the Ady Gil near the path of the oncoming ship was a huge error.

The anti whaling forces can never hope to win a battle of attrition with the whalers. They have more and bigger ships, and they can get away with murder. They will, eventually, if the anti whalers get too close to them.

In my view, the better stratagem is to use whale warning sounds broadcast into water to warn off whales. By using more vessels and smaller vessels, they can better track the whalers, and by avoiding the confrontations, they can avoid losing vessels and lives.

[petronius]

54. I would not object to that strategy - they could call it 'research'

"Observational analysis of cetacean response to pre-recorded distress signals in a low-traffic pelagic environment."

NSF or NOAA might even have a grant program for that sort of thing... :)

[Doremus]

41. +1 Yup.

[petronius]

48. Who actually owned the boat? I always thought it was Bethune's property

from the beginning - am I wrong?

[Chan790]

55. He sold it to Ady Gil...

who either gave or lent it (I don't recall which) to SSCS on the condition that Bethune was the best man to captain it, a position that SSCS was more than willing to agree to because Bethune was both an accomplished sailor (He holds the record for fastest naval circumnavigation in a speed-boat) and a like-minded activist for whales.

[petronius]

56. I see, thanks. In that case, it seems like Gil would have grounds to complain about the scuttling,

if the boat was a loan and depending on the terms of that loan, but at this point Bethune doesn't have much more standing to grouse than anyone else on the planet...

[flvegan]

57. The boat was legally owned by Ady Gil/Earthrace Ltd.

The Earthrace boat was up for sale by Bethune/Earthrace when Ady Gil donated $1 million and change to retrofit her to join the Sea Shepherd campaign.

I'm actually fairly shocked that the boat wasn't insured (allegedly). That would have been an interesting subrogation between say, Lloyds of London and the Institute of Cetacean Research (who charted the boat from a Japanese company).

[petronius]

58. The lack of an insurance battle is surprising. I saw one quote from Watson to the effect

that there wouldn't be an insurance payout because the sinking was a deliberate act and an "act of war", which seems to imply there was a policy. However, it would be a strange policy that had an exception for someone else destroying your property, and I doubt insurance companies interpret act of war the same way Watson was...

[flvegan]

59. Agreed, very odd.

It would seem that Ady Gil/Earthrace could and would state that while in the Southern Ocean it was deliberately rammed by another boat. It's not "war" but aggression. Ocean rage.

[wordpix]

61. looks like a court case in the making to me