Environmental Extremists

Eco-Terrorism

It is the concept, when ecosystems face serious damages due to the political and economic reasons. It also occurs when state or corporations damage natural resources for their own means and profits. Most organizations, which do not have proper hierarchal structure got engaged in the eco-terrorism.

A number of organizations show commitment in protecting the global ecosystem. Such organizations take direct and strategic actions for exposing the global environmental problems and promotion of public support for a safer environment. They also pressurize firms' and states which do not adopt ecologically sound standards for environmental stability (Lee Martha, pp. 11).

Examples of such activist groups include Greenpeace, Animal Liberation Front, Earth First, Earth Liberation Front Green Scare, Sea Shepherd etc.

Sea Shepherd Activist Group

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is a non-profit and marine conservation organization. This environmental activist group established in 1977 commonly called as “Shepherd Conservation Society”. This group seems to attack whaling and fishing vessels. The philosophy behind the group is to eliminate whaling, sea hunting and other abuses of the seas. The owner of this group is wanted by various countries due to attacking whaling ships. International maritime law is badly influenced due to severe activities of this group. Sea Shepherd considered being more violent in comparison with the Greenpeace.

During the 1970s, the Greenpeace gained new popularity due to more extreme violent acts regarding nuclear testing, commercial testing and other anti-environmental practices. The charter member of Greenpeace was Paul Watson, and he was among the annoyed members of the group. Watson left Greenpeace in 1977 and his crucial efforts led to the building of other anti-environmental group namely “Sea Shepherd Conservation Society”.

Sea Shepherd considers itself as a police of ocean and marine life conservation. Objective is to prevent illegal whaling activities. Society also works for the enforcement of the regulations of International Whaling Commission.

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society was known as the most violent group throughout the 1980s. Watson, the founder of this group, was engaged in more violent attacks by demanding credit for sinking whaling and fishing vessels of Spain, Iceland and other nations.

Various independent sources such as government of Norway accelerated the involvement of Watson in attacking whaling ships off the coast in 1994. The Norwegian coast guard Andenes tried his best to stop the vessel and arrest Watson.

So far till 2005, Sea Shepherd led the group and considered as the extremist edge towards the anti-environmental movement. Sea Shepherd Conservation Society had offices in United States, Great Britain and Canada (Richard, pp. 295).

History

The Sea Shepherd took first direct action against Canadian seal hunting in the Gulf of St. Lawrence in 1979. In the same year, the group succeeded in ramming the whaling vessel. After 1979, Sea Shepherd actively involved in attacking, damaging and sinking numerous whaling ships through sabotage or ramming. Through multiple campaigns across the globe, the group intervenes against Russian, Spanish, Makah, Norwegian, Faroese and Icelandic whalers.

Watson's operations in international water take place through three vessels broadly such as MY Steve Irwin, the Bob Barker and the MV Brigitte ...