"A US court has declared the conservation group Sea Shepherd to be 'pirates' and ordered it to stop its aggressive actions against Japanese whalers."
"The ruling was issued on Wednesday by chief judge Alex Kozinski of the 9th US circuit court of appeals.
In his 18-page opinion, he wrote: 'You don't need a peg leg or an eye patch. When you ram ships; hurl containers of acid; drag metal-reinforced ropes in the water to damage propellers and rudders; launch smoke bombs and flares with hooks; and point high-powered lasers at other ships, you are, without a doubt, a pirate, no matter how high-minded you believe your purpose to be.'
The lawsuit was brought by a group of Japanese researchers who hunt whales in the Southern Ocean, collectively referred to in the judgment as 'Cetacean'. Their legal action to halt Sea Shepherd comes after years of clashes at sea."
Alan Yuhas reports for the Guardian February 27, 2013.
