Farley Mowat seized as Canada declares war on the Sea Shepherds

[ex Strathcona]

2 crew members arrested as federal officers seize anti-sealing vessel

Last Updated: Saturday, April 12, 2008 | 11:56 AM NT Comments43 (http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2008/04/12/seal-hunt.html#storypost)Recommend30 (http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2008/04/12/seal-hunt.html#)

CBC News (http://www.cbc.ca/news/credit.html)


Fisheries officers seized a ship used in a protest against the seal hunt off the East Coast on Saturday to arrest its captain and first officer, federal Fisheries Minister Loyola Hearn has confirmed.
Hearn said the two crew members of Farley Mowat, owned by the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, violated Canadian marine mammal regulations.
The minister said the safety and security of the sealers is the government's main focus and the seizing of the vessel will ensure a safe and orderly seal hunt.
Last week, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans announced it would lay charges against the captain and first officer of the anti-sealing vessel, alleging they threatened a coast guard vessel by getting too close to seal hunters.
Officers in boarding parties from two coast guard ships approached the Farley Mowat around 11 a.m. local time in the Cabot Strait on Saturday, according to Paul Watson, head of the conservation society.
Speaking in an interview from New York, he told CBC News that the two icebreakers dispatched four inflatable boats, carrying armed officers.
Boarding called 'act of war'
Watson said he was on the phone to one of the crew members of the Farley Mowat as officers took command of the vessel. He said they were "screaming at people to lie down on the deck.
"They stormed the vessel. They forced everyone down on to the deck at gunpoint. I could hear the yelling in the background, and then the phone went dead. It's obvious that they seized the vessel, and they did so illegally.
"The Dutch-registered Farley Mowat never entered Canadian waters," Watson maintained. "It was always in international waters, and it’s technically an act of war to board a vessel outside the 12-mile [19 kilometres] limit without the permission of the captain."
Final phase of seal hunt begins
The confrontation occurred as the final phase of the East Coast seal hunt opened in an area north of Newfoundland known as the Front.
Larry Yetman, a spokesperson with the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, said half the number of vessels reported in the Gulf of Lawrence hunt last year are involved this time around.
The drop in the number is even greater in the Front, he said.
"Right now we're looking at 120 vessels, and last year I think there was 403, so you can see there's been a reduction in participation this year," Yetman said.
Fishermen have said the rising cost of fuel and the fact that they'll only be getting $35 a pelt — down from an average of $65 last year — are deterring many from heading out.
The hunt opened in the Gulf of St. Lawrence on Friday for western Newfoundland. Yetman said conditions were tough, with strong winds, snow and not that many seals

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/newfoundland-labrador/story/2008/04/12/seal-hunt.html

[Zoomie]

LOL, nice misleading title change.

[ex Strathcona]

i though it was a nice touch

[The Black Watch]

Ha i first thought Canadian was going to war
Then i remembered that Canada wouldnt do that

[goat89]

Ha i first thought Canadian was going to war
Then i remembered that Canada wouldnt do that
:roll:
Right, sea shepards? Sweet. :)

[ex Strathcona]

Ha i first thought Canadian was going to war
Then i remembered that Canada wouldnt do that

what Canada are you thinking of? certainly not the one i live in:)

[DE_Six]

About fecking time...

Sea Shepherd label themselves "eco-pirates" and are listed as terrorist/criminal organization by the FBI.

http://www.fbi.gov/congress/congress02/jarboe021202.htm

As of yet, the RV Farley Mowat (the ship that was boarded),while belonging to a society registered in the Netherlands, sails without a registration flag.

They have in the past assaulted fishermen and attempted to inflict damage on fishing vessels...There's a gun mounted on that vessel, one wonders why environmental activists would need a cannon...


They should be declared fair game to any military/law enforcement agent or entity like the pirates they are.

[goat89]

what Canada are you thinking of? certainly not the one i live in:)
Tell that to the hippies living here in BC. Frigging protest capital of Canada.

[The Black Watch]

Tell that to the hippies living here in BC. Frigging protest capital of Canada.

I agree. Then there in Toronto the "Centre of the Universe"
But then again i come from Alberta so......

[ex Strathcona]

:) actually i am impressed with the increase of support the troops magnets seen on cars in the Toronto area over the last few years, so maybe there is hope for them

[The Black Watch]

Thats good they did also rename that highway to Highway of heroes i think...

[goat89]

:) actually i am impressed with the increase of support the troops magnets seen on cars in the Toronto area over the last few years, so maybe there is hope for them
I almost seen none here. But when remeberance day comes, I will try to salute anyone in uniform. Reminds me of my days a s a lowly cadet back home across the big blue. Sigh...

[fac3s]

Who conducts boarding operations for the CCG? The RCMP?

I wonder how that works.

[MichaelF]

Didn't one of the "Sea Shepherds" boats ram a Norwegian corvette, a few years back?

[Roy Batty]

Ha i first thought Canadian was going to war
Then i remembered that Canada wouldnt do that

Really? You cant honestly believe that can you? Tell me your not that naive.....




Good story Strat.

[fac3s]

Didn't one of the "Sea Shepherds" boats ram a Norwegian corvette, a few years back?

That wouldn't be too far fetched and not the first time it has happened either.

According to their website, they have actively chased, rammed, AND sunk several ships over the years.

http://www.seashepherd.org/whales/whales_SSCS_history.html

[boone]

Tell that to the hippies living here in BC. Frigging protest capital of Canada.
I hear Singapore is quite tolerant. Perhaps you should try living there.

[boone]

There's a gun mounted on that vessel, one wonders why environmental activists would need a cannon...

There is no gun-mount on that boat. It's a fire-fighting monitor.

[Bombtrack]

Can a mod change "The Black Watch's" name please.

[Reaver]

Sea Shepherd's are tards. They like to run around destroying people livelihoods. These people have sank whaling ships in the past. And it probably wont be long before they start arming them selves

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sea_Shepherd

Also people in BC are hept up on drugs and have no sense of reality and I am from Ontario, only 135 km from Toronto.

[Calanen]

This is a bit different from the Japanese whaling thing, because the Japanese were in Australian territorial waters. I dont care what the Canadians do in their own backyard.

[ex1cdo]

:) actually i am impressed with the increase of support the troops magnets seen on cars in the Toronto area over the last few years, so maybe there is hope for them

Those are on cars driven into the Centre of the Universe by evil 905-dwellers. The uber-cool hipsters in Hogtown probably don't even know we have a military, let alone people deployed in a shooting war.

[DE_Six]

There is no gun-mount on that boat. It's a fire-fighting monitor.

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/13/DSC_0504_sm.jpg

What's that thing? A flare gun?

Anyway, it's a moot point. Their ramming and reckless sailing record is enough to make them undesirable on the water. p-)

[Bombtrack]

Those are on cars driven into the Centre of the Universe by evil 905-dwellers. The uber-cool hipsters in Hogtown probably don't even know we have a military, let alone people deployed in a shooting war.


Actually we're pretty aware, seeing as how every time the convoy makes its way to Grenville the highways are lined with people in support. People who call Toronto the Centre of the Universe are just as arrogant as the people they're generalising.

[The Black Watch]

Dude i lived in Toronto for 9 years of my life.
A lot of people there don't care about the rest of the country.

[Roy Batty]

Are you a member or former member of The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment of Canada)? Or do you have a family connection to the unit?

[ex Strathcona]

Dude i lived in Toronto for 9 years of my life.
A lot of people there don't care about the rest of the country.
Dude i grew up in and around Toronto and lived in Calgary for 9 years and Edmonton for 1 and there are people like that in both places.

in fact I'll make a bet with you, i will go to Calgary, hang out and chat with the locals and bring up that i am from Toronto, You come here to Toronto and do the same thing telling them your from Alberta. lets see who gets into a fight first (hint, it wont be you)

[The Black Watch]

Are you a member or former member of The Black Watch (Royal Highland Regiment of Canada)? Or do you have a family connection to the unit?

I believe my grandfather did. I could not verify it or not.
I was considering just changing it.

[The Black Watch]

Dude i grew up in and around Toronto and lived in Calgary for 9 years and Edmonton for 1 and there are people like that in both places.

in fact I'll make a bet with you, i will go to Calgary, hang out and chat with the locals and bring up that i am from Toronto, You come here to Toronto and do the same thing telling them your from Alberta. lets see who gets into a fight first (hint, it wont be you)

No doubt. Just bring up the Liberals :)

[Fifty Gut]

"Canada declares war on..." rofl

[Roy Batty]

"Canada declares war on..." rofl

Problem????

[Bombtrack]

You're off to a great start Fifty Gut.

[ex Strathcona]

"Canada declares war on..." rofl
the thread title was meant to be tongue in cheek, poking some fun at the statement by the founder of the sea shepherd society but its good to see it also brings out the moronic first time posters too.

[Vince S]

These people should be tossed to the sea with a good ol' cinderblock attached to their feet.

These are the same pricks who celebrated the death of 4 seal hunters near Nova Scotia...

[TheKiwi]

So the ship has been seized? One word: SinkEx. Give the "new" subs a target to practice on.

[Reaver]

So the ship has been seized? One word: SinkEx. Give the "new" subs a target to practice on.

Sounds like Marine life will be getting a new home to live in.

I wonder how many safety violations the ship will get.

[Mastermind]

Perhaps the "Pirates" can demand assylum, since I doubt the seal pirates will be taken back into their organization without some sort of retribution...sever tongue lashing, I suspect, for losing a valuable vessel and tying the group up in court for the next twenty years or so.

[Holmer]

Who conducts boarding operations for the CCG? The RCMP?

I wonder how that works.

RCMP and DFO officers.

[fac3s]

Perhaps the "Pirates" can demand assylum, since I doubt the seal pirates will be taken back into their organization without some sort of retribution...sever tongue lashing, I suspect, for losing a valuable vessel and tying the group up in court for the next twenty years or so.

No, those guys had it all planned out as a PR campaign. First the grazings against our coast guard icebreakers to make it appear as if the CCG rammed them and now this. Their leader was even on-record admitting this on live TV.

I just hope people in Europe don't believe their crap, because all of this was done to sway European opinions as they prepare to decide on wheter or not Canadian seal products should be made illegal.

[fac3s]

From their website...


SPECIAL POLL: PLEASE VOTE!
Click below to vote on whether it was right for the RCMP to board the Farley Mowat. The Globe Poll is on the right side less than halfway down the page.

link (http://www.seashepherd.org/news/media_080414_1.html)

Bastards! They can't subvert an important national poll like that!

Anyone reading this who support Canadian fishermen, please visit this website (http://www.theglobeandmail.com/) and vote yes!

EDIT: Alright the results are in. Thanks to anyone who participated.



Was the RCMP right to seize the anti-sealing vessel Farley Mowat?

Yes
80% 17218 votes


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No
20% 4321 votes


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