We won't stop, activists tell Japanese whalers

0 Comments | AFP, January, 2008

SYDNEY (AFP) — A militant anti-whaling group chasing Japanese whalers refused Wednesday to abandon their high-seas harassment in return for the release of two of its activists detained on board one of the ships.

The standoff in the icy waters off the Antarctic has forced the government in Australia to contact Tokyo to try to secure their release.

But Paul Watson, head of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, accused Japan of using "terrorist" tactics by holding the two men hostage and making demands in return for their freedom.

"I got a letter from (Japan's) Institute of Cetacean Research saying they'll release the hostages if we agree to not interfere with their whaling operations," he told AFP.

"Now when you start making demands for the return of...