Whaling Protestors Released by Japan

Jan. 17, 2008 -- A Japanese whaling ship late Thursday handed over to an Australian customs vessel two anti-whaling activists who climbed aboard two days earlier, an official from Japan's Fisheries Agency said.

Australia sent the customs ship, the Oceanic Viking, to the Japanese whaling ship in a bid to end the stand-off involving the activists of the militant Sea Shepherd Conservation Society.

"Two Sea Shepherd activists who intruded onto the Yushin Maru No. 2 and have been in custody on the ship were handed over to the Oceanic Viking chartered by the Australian government," Hideaki Okada, a whaling official at the Fisheries Agency in Tokyo, said early Friday.

The activists -- Australian Benjamin Potts, 28, and Briton Giles Lane, 35 -- were detained Tuesday after boarding the harpoon ship to protest Japan's whaling program.

U.S.-based Sea Shepherd strongly opposes Japan's plan to kill some 1,000 whales in the Antarctic Ocean this season.

The group described the activists as hostages and said they were being held as Japan pressed for the group to agree to give up its harassment of the Japanese whaling fleet.

Attempts to contact Sea Shepherd's vessel, the Steve Irwin, on its satellite phone proved unsuccessful, and there was no initial response from Australia's foreign ministry on the release.

Japan, which says whaling is part of its culture, described the militants as unwanted guests and said it was trying to get rid of them safely.

Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said earlier Thursday that his government was sending the customs ship to pick up the activists.