Environmentalists, tuna fishers battle at sea

[cory777]

Source: Associated Press

ABOARD THE STEVE IRWIN – Tuna fishermen confronted environmentalists on the Mediterranean on Saturday, as activists attempted to disrupt illegal tuna fishing under the no-fly zone north of Libya.

The fishermen attacked the Steve Irwin, owned by the U.S.-based Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, by hurling heavy metal chain links aboard. They also attempted to lay a rope in front of the activists' boat, hoping to disable it. Environmentalists responded with water from fire hoses and stink bombs.

Several hundred feet above the fray circled a French fighter jet, summoned by the fishermen — who claimed, falsely, that activist divers were trying to cut their net.

The 59.5-meter (195-foot) Steve Irwin, named after the Australian conservationist who died in 2006, left the Sicilian port of Syracuse early Friday, heading for a rendezvous with a smaller, faster sister ship, the Brigitte Bardot, just north of Libyan waters. The Bardot had traversed the area and reported that more than 20 purse seiners were operating there.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20110611/ap_on_bi_ge/sea_shepherd_tuna

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Activist News http://activistnews.blogspot.com/

[flvegan]

1. Go get 'em, Sea Shepherd.

[GliderGuider]

2. SSCS are world-class, globe-spanning heroes standing up for the rights of ocean life everywhere

The principles of Deep Ecology that are supported and defended by SSCS:

1. The well-being and flourishing of human and nonhuman life on Earth have intrinsic value. These values are independent of the usefulness of the nonhuman world for human purposes.
2. Richness and diversity of life forms contribute to the realization of these values and are also values in themselves.
3. Humans have no right to reduce this richness and diversity except to satisfy vital human needs.
4. The flourishing of human life and cultures is compatible with a substantial decrease of the human population. The flourishing of nonhuman life requires such a decrease.
5. Present human interference with the nonhuman world is excessive, and the situation is rapidly worsening.
6. Policies must therefore be changed. These policies affect basic economic, technological, and ideological structures. The resulting state of affairs will be deeply different from the present.
7. The ideological change is mainly that of appreciating life quality (dwelling in situations of inherent value) rather than adhering to an increasingly higher standard of living.
8. Those who subscribe to the foregoing points have an obligation directly or indirectly to try to implement the necessary changes.

[Doremus]

3. Thank you once again, Sea Shepherd! n/t

[blackspade]

4. +1000

[ChrisBorg]

5. "They also attempted to lay a rope in front of the activists' boat"

I wonder where they learned that one. Next they will be throwing rotten butter bombs.

[The Stranger]

6. Go Sea Shepherd!

Argh!

[bahrbearian]

7. Kick for the Sea Shepard..

[fascisthunter]

8. over-fishing will kill the fishing industry

[petronius]

9. Even if there had been divers, wouldn't a submarine be more useful than a jet fighter?

:shrug: