On July 19, 2010 the Sea Shepherds sent an undercover operative, Peter Hammerstedt (also 1st mate on the Sea Shepherds Bob Barker) to document the grind of a pod of 236 pilot whales in the town of Klaksvik in the Danish Faeroe islands. the grind is a cruel anf barbarick method of whaling that involves stranding pods of cetaceans in coves before severing their spinal chords with knives.
Peter Hammerstedt had been living among the ferocious islanders for a week with the identity of a Swedish film student. Hammerstedt heard of a grinding on the radio and headed there immediately. Grossly outnumbered anu unable to phsically stop the grinding, Hammerstedt documented the bloodshed upon arrival. The government said the deaths of the whales were quick and painless but the newly released footage showed otherwise.
"One whale had 5 to 6 chops in her head", reported Hammerstedt," She was basically used as a chopping board. Her death would have been slow and painful. Some whales are hacked repeatedly for up to four minutes before they finally died. Bodies had been cut out of their mothers and left to rot on the docks.
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dead baby whale :( |
Pilot whales are considered "strictly protected" onder the Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats. Denmark fails to abide by these obligations by letting the slaughtering continue.
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whale grinding |
Hammerstedt was ultimately recognized by several hunters due to his role on the Animal Planet TV Series Whale Wars. When the whale killers began following
hammerstedt at a distance of a foot he quickly escaped to his car, left and uploaded images and footage to get them safely out of the country. Pictures of the grind are posted below.
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whales on the docks |
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whales on the docks |
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men standing by whales on the docks |
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