An angry Loftsson said that security in the Rotterdam harbor was lacking. After the incident containers with the fin whale meat were brought ashore. The meat was on its way to Japan. Most likely it will be brought back to Iceland if there are foreseeable delays in Holland.
The Greenpeace group was not arrested after the incident according to a police spokesman in Rotterdam. Loftsson said that all papers were in order and there was nothing unlawful with the meat. “This is just a group of terrorists”, he said. The harbor authorities clearly did not do their job. “Everybody can do what they want. They could have blown up the ship”.
Iceland’s whale hunt will likely continue beyond this year. Just this past Monday, the Icelandic government released the findings of a study into whaling’s economic impacts. Iceland has concluded that there is an economic case for ongoing whaling and that fewer whales will mean more fish for its commercial fisheries.
First fin whale caught in Iceland 2006. Photo: EKG
