Skip to main content

NAME CALLING

The net reportedly cut by Bethune when boarding. He also reported cutting his hand.

Having been busy watching the Olympics from Vancouver BC where I lived for two years and of course a visit to the Miami International Boat Show, I finally got to my mail this morning. It came as no real surprise that two Media Releases from The Institute of Cetacean Research were waiting for me. It seems that once again the people in the Southern Ocean are behaving stupidly - well now that's a bit harsh - NAUTICAL LOG is not perfect so perhaps we should change that to inappropriately - there that's better.

When the DVC Ady Gil was sunk her Captain Peter Bethune was quoted as saying to his wife in New Zealand that all he wanted to do was head for home. Sometime later he arrived in Perth Western Australia aboard MS Steve Irwin and was interviewed by the NZ Maritime Authorities. When she sailed two or three days later he was 'mentioned-in-dispatches' as being aboard as an officer. Full of 'pissandvigor' again to save the whales or not quite prepared to go home to New Zealand just yet - whatever.

Under stress people act stupidly - sorry inappropriately - so here one sees in the ICR Media Releases that he Bethune a New Zealand national has somehow boarded the MS Shonan Maru #2 at sea. With some idea to place a 'citizens arrest', which does not actually apply under International Maritime Law, on her Japanese Master. The Master placed him under restraint in accordance with the Japanese Mariners Act. It appears that Bethune cut his hand in boarding and this has been treated by the Japanese crew.

All this maritime shenanigans is going on in vessels underway at sea during 'The Year of the Seafarer 2010' while the International Maritime Organization (IMO) does absolutely nothing about it. These being the people we seafarers are supposed to look too for guidance in nautical matters - yeah really!

In fairness to the Sea Shepherd Pirate Group at their website one may read their side of this stupidity oops sorry - inappropriate behaviour - if one can interpret the confused logic and complex subject overlap of 'Wats-his-names' statements. As usual he plays a dangerous game with other peoples lives and then goes home to a new residence in Friday Harbor, WA or so NAUTICAL LOG has been told. No doubt he is quite the local hero there with all this latest publicity on creative TV at Animal Planet!!

For those of you interested in such things there are three Agencies which handle maritime affairs in Japan, these are the Japan Coast Guard, The Japan Shipping Exchange, and the Tokyo Maritime Arbitration Commission. Mr. Peter Bethune would seem to be heading for the Japanese Courts since he is now a guest of the Japanese Maritime Legal System. Hope he likes Japanese food, such as sushi and bluefin tuna - no whale meat of course that's for research only!

Good Watch.

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

PAINT LOCKER FIRES

The photographs above are revealing in several ways, lets have a look. Clearly the Japanese Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) vessel JS "Kurama" impacted the Korean container ship MS "Carina Star" just aft of the turn of the fo'cs'le on the Starboard side. Please note that's the Starboard side, thus it appears JS "Kurama" would have shown "Carina Star" the red port sidelight and "Carina Star" would have shown JS "Kurama" the green starboard sidelight. This impact point would tend to suggest that JS "Kurama" was the 'stand-on' vessel and the MS "Carina Star" is the 'giving-way' vessel. Until there is a complete plot of the tracks made good of both these vessels and the position in the Kanmon Strait of the point of collision no determination can actually be made. As a result of this impact there was severe bow damage to JS "Kurama" and in addition a massive f

HOW TO WEAR A LIFEJACKET

A popular U.S.-based cruise ship style A popular European ferry style Several times during the year NAUTICAL LOG has had visitors searching for lifejacket instructions. With two just over Christmas we decided to publish something for everybody to see and read. Choose a Coast Guard approved life-jacket and make sure it is undamaged. Make sure life-jackets are readily accessible, never locked away. Check the fit, there are adult, child and infant sizes, the correct one MUST be used. Choose bright colour life-jackets so as to be seen easily by Search and Rescue (SAR). Put your life-jacket ON BEFORE you leave the berth. Make sure you have a light and whistle attached AND they BOTH WORK. Good Watch

BOUILLABAISSE

TAAF Service vessel operated by CMA CGM TAAF Regional flag Well now let us see if here at NAUTICAL LOG we have got a grasp on things simmering in the pot. It seems that when the anti-whaling campaign started out some years ago it was between Greenpeace, the Sea Shepherds and the Japanese whaling fleet. The Australians came down to their own Southern Ocean Territory in a chartered civilian vessel one year. Beyond taking photographs and returning some Sea Shepherds to their ship the MS "Steve Irwin" not much was accomplished. The Greenpeace crowd then dropped out and Animal Planet boarded the MS "Steve Irwin" to shoot 'reality TV' and so Whale Wars came into being. This resulted in some deplorable behaviour on all sides and some appalling exhibitions of seamanship - or rather total lack of seamanship by the Sea Shepherds. But now there was money coming in which could be spent on - well nobody really knows what the money is spent on. New Zealand made it q