French Fishermen Bring Attention to the Diminishment of Sharks off the West Coast of France Commentary by Captain Paul Watson I have fought fishermen all my life. Not just any fishermen, but the ones who break the laws and act unethically, the ones who believe that they are entitled to plunder the sea without regard to the welfare of future generations. They are pretty easy to identify for they are usually the ones to get defensively angry and to threaten violence against conservationists. This week the Sea Shepherd France Ambassador ship Columbus owned and skippered by legendary French sailor Captain Jean Yves Terlain arrived at l Ile dYeu off the West coast of France. They put into the port of the small island to escape the rough weather, but instead of finding safety from the storm they encountered the hostility of a group of fishermen who cut the mooring lines and attacked the vessel with bags of flour and eggs. Apparently they were upset with myself, which is amusing since I have never even heard of l Ile dYeu. Thanks to their actions I am now very much aware of the island of Yeu for which I am rhankful. According to the fishermen I am responsible for the ban on shortfin mako sharks by the European Union that was brought into effect in 2009. When asked by the media for the reason for the attack, the representative for the fishermen said their motive for the aggressive attack on the Columbus was, “The commitment of Paul Watson, founder of the NGO, who was instrumental in the decision to prohibit fishing porbeagle sharks in 2009, He described me as ‘”screaming like a wolf to end shark fishing.” This is all quite flattering because although we have long campaigned for the defense of sharks worldwide we were not actually involved with the EU decision. We do not have a lobbyist in Brussels and we have never confronted any fishermen from l Ile dYeu. However it appears the fishermen of l Ile dYeu indeed need to be watched. Their attack seems to indicate they have something to hide and perhaps there may be some illegal fishing going on by these fishermen, and if so, we intend to look into it. Sea Shepherd has never even had an awareness campaign about this issue on this island but thanks to the fishermen of l Ile dYeu it looks like they have initiated an awareness campaign all on their own and thanks to this childish attack with flour and eggs the French media have picked up the story. Now the fishermen may be feeling real good about giving Captain Terlain the hostile welcome but the cost of this reception will not be borne by Sea Shepherd. Instead it is having the effect of telling Europe that there must be some very fishy business going about on l Ile dYeu for them to be so hostile. Sea Shepherd actually has many fishermen who support the organization. These are the fishermen who follow the rules and actually care about the future of diversity in the Ocean. Obviously these few fishermen on l Ile dYeu are not of that group of responsible fishermen. The police had been on the boat to have coffee with Captain Terlain and had warned him that the fishermen may have plans to attack the boat. However they did nothing to prevent it and stood by as the attack took place after which they advised Jean Yves to return to sea into the storm to avoid further violence. There were no arrests. Captain Terlain took the advice of the police and departed. The flour and eggs have been hosed off the deck and the Colombus carries on leaving in her wake an unintentional result of focusing attention on the behavior and attitudes that tend to give a bad name to all fishermen. The flour and egg washed into the sea was welcome fare to the fish but the egg on the faces of the fishermen of Yeu may prove more difficulty to remove. Not everyone on l Ile dYeu agrees with the behavior of these few fishermen. We received this message resident of the island of Yeu this morning Re: Shame on the Ile dYeu Hello, I am a resident of the island of Yeu and I came this afternoon with my kids to see the Sea Shepherd ship Colombus and perhaps to meet the crew. What a surprise when he wanted to take the pontoon boat leading down to the boat when a gendarme dissuaded me, as it seems, it was dangerous We went to the dock because I wanted ny children to learn about threats to the future of the sea. I saw fishermen prepare rotten eggs and flour to lynch this beautiful boat with a handful of men on board. I took my children, not wanting them to see this beautiful symbol lynched when I had just explained the cause for which the good pirates were fighting. Im so ashamed for them, what narrow-minded, what lack of humanity! And returning the Sea Shepherd ship to sea in rough weather when it was damaged! My message to this fishermen is who authorized you to attack this boat. This island is not theirs !!!! I had tears in my eyes to see them leavea. I hope they have not had any problems at sea ... My husband, my children and myself are proud of you and your values. Continue and a huge thank you! !
Posted on: Sat, 08 Nov 2014 14:15:03 +0000
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