They tell me that it might be 6 months or more before the International Court of Justice at The Hague brings down its verdict in the case of illegal Japanese whaling practices brought against the Japanese by the Australian government. Well, I for one hope that it takes far less time than that as the Japanese will once again be returning to the protected Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary sometime in November to resume their criminal whaling activities that they thinly disguise as ‘scientific research’. Once more, and to humanity’s great shame, they will apply a self- imposed kill quota of over 1,000 of these truly magnificent mammals. As usual, the toothless Australian government will not do a thing to protect its territorial waters and these gentle giants of the deep. Thank god we have the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society; the only organisation to use direct action to stop this senseless slaughter.

Commercial whaling was outlawed by the International Whaling Commission back in 1986 as a result of almost every species of whale being placed on the critically endangered list, or classified as at least ‘vulnerable’. Yet rogue nations such as Japan, Norway and Iceland have continued to thumb their noses at the rest of the world and continue this out dated and abhorrent practice much to the chagrin of the majority of the global population.

Here today in the year 2013 there is just no place for this type of senseless savagery and environmental barbarism. Whales don’t belong to any nation. We, as global citizens, are all responsible for their welfare and well being. They do not belong to the Japanese government and their morally bankrupt gang of thugs from the Institute of Cetacean Research. They most certainly do not belong on the flensing deck of the Nishan Maru – the most despicable and horrid of all the ships currently sailing our world’s oceans.

The world and its people know that there is no science here, just slaughter. The so-called defence of the whaling provided by the Japanese counsel at the at The Hague was no more than a plea to the court and the watching world media to let them once again resume their commercial hunt. The judges must not let this happen. They must act and bring down the verdict that the ‘scientific research’ of the Japanese is a sham…nothing more than commercial whaling poorly hidden behind a white lab coat.

This most evil of all practices must finally be laid to rest, once and for all.

If you believe in this cause you can support Sea Shepherd Australia’s 2013 / 14 Antarctic Whale Defence Campaign, ‘Operation Relentless’ by making a donation at www.seashepherd.org.au, or contact Australian Minister for the Environment Mark Butler to make your voice heard.