Sea Shepherd buys anti-whaling ship from Japan

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/dec/11/sea-shepherd-buys-whaling-vessel


The Sam Simon is named after the Los Angeles-based philanthropist and co-creator of The Simpsons. Photograph: Carolina A Castro/AP

The marine conservation group Sea Shepherd has scored a propaganda victory over Japan after it emerged it had bought its newest anti-whaling vessel from the Japanese government, apparently without its knowledge.

The $2m dollar vessel, which previously belonged to the country's meteorological agency, was bought from unsuspecting Japanese authorities by a US company, re-registered in the Pacific island of Tuvalu as the New Atlantis, and delivered to Australia by a Japanese crew.

The ship, which was unveiled on Tuesday in Hobart, was reflagged to Australia and named after Sam Simon, the founding producer of The Simpsons TV series and a prominent animal rights campaigner.

It is the newest addition to a fleet of four Sea Shepherd vessels that is expected to pursue Japan's whalers soon after they leave for the Antarctic later this month.