Sunday 10 April
As the sun crept over the horizon on Sunday morning we were greeted with a beautiful sight – the whole flotilla converging in preparation for our first big day of action. The coming together of the five vessels united by a common goal, white sails glowing pink in the dawn light made for a wonderful moment. Although the synchronized arrival was no act of magic (we had agreed the co-ordinates and time previously) there was still a touch of mystery to see our full flotilla amassing in the first soft light of day, as if drawn together by magic.
But 35 nautical miles north of East Cape that day, we had more on our minds than the beauty of a sunrise at sea. Anticipation and nerves were building as we contemplated what was to happen that day.
We had already met with the seismic survey vessel the Orient Explorer and in the tradition of bearing witness, we have observed and shadowed the ship as much as possible, as a demonstration of our opposition to deep sea oil drilling.
However today was the day to step it up a notch. Our flotilla shadowed the oil ship for few hours together with our three inflatable boats in the water. Then, loaded with activists and banners, our inflatables headed directly into the path of the Orient Explorer. In order to conduct its testing the ship must keep a straight course to get accurate data about the formations thousands of metres below. By impacting the course of the ship we are affecting the testing.
It was a tense moment while we waited to see how they would react. We hailed the captain on VHF stating that our boats would not move and that he must immediately alter his course and stop operations. The seismic vessel closed on the inflatables but was eventually forced to deviate from its course. And each time it turned our inflatables moved into its path again.
After several rounds of this we then put swimmers in the water at a safe distance but still on the course and in the way of the ship. Wearing wetsuits and survival suits, each swimmer had a floating buoy and a banner carrying the message ’Stop Deep Sea Oil.’ Our activists in the water stayed staunch and resolute as the Orient Explorer bore down on them. And once again, success, as the vessel deviated from its course even more dramatically and the cables towing the seismic testing gear behind it sank further into the water. Our activists kept this up for several hours, continually moving in front of the ship and forcing it off course. In the early afternoon, the Orient Explorer did a full 180 degree turn and headed back along the transect it had been trying to test before we disrupted its operations. Later that afternoon we learned that Petrobras had put out a press release saying that it had ceased testing due to our protest and that it was not sure when it would resume. We had won round one! The news was greeted on the flotilla with big smiles, and a bunch “woo hoo”ing. A few spontaneous dance moves may even have been busted out on deck.
But this is just the beginning. If Petrobras or the Government believe that after today the Deep Sea Oil Flotilla will just sail off into the sunset, that we’ve ‘made our point’ and will now head back to the comforts of land and home, they are wrong. The depth of passion out here, and the sense of commitment to doing all that we can to stop deep sea oil exploration, is incredibly strong. The combined forces that comprise the flotilla; the individual captains with their own vessels – including Clemes Oestrich at the helm of Infinity, and David Armstrong, the skipper of Secret Affair – together with Te Whanau a Apanui and Greenpeace, remain steadfast and determined. Each will stay as long as they are able and do all that they can to see an end to this reckless pursuit of the last few drops of oil. We are not only buoyed by today’s success but also by the knowledge that we carry with us the sentiment of the thousands of New Zealanders opposed to deep sea oil exploration in our waters. We hope that others will join the flotilla as this campaign rolls out so that we continually build the flotilla’s presence out here off the East Cape.
Monday 11 April
Feeling buoyed by Sunday’s victory we continued to tail the seismic survey ship for as long as we could during the night. It is a strange challenge to try to keep our flotilla together, and our target in sight, out here in the middle of nowhere. It is hard enough during the day, as the different flotilla vessals all have different capabilities. Add a bit of night time and some tiredness and things get really interesting.
Eventually we lost visual contact with the Orient Explorer last night which was very frustrating. But we have a number of different sources of information and we know that we’ll catch up with them very soon. It is a real game of cat and mouse out here and we are determined to keep chasing them and continue our peaceful protest against their activities. We are also confident that they have not been operating for quite a while and that they appear to be running from us, trying to avoid the flotilla. So our success at stopping their operations continues.
Added into this surreal game of hide and seek is the effect of just being at sea and so removed from the goings on on land. After 11 days at sea time has started to take on a different dimension. Things pass more slowly on the ocean it seems. The hours and days slip past and slide into one another becoming indistinct. It is as though we have stepped out of time and are living in an alternate universe. We are so focused on our mission – and just keeping the boats running and the flotilla together – that not much else seems to matter.
But suffice to say, we are keen to continue our work out here and to bring the message back to the New Zealand Government and Petrobras that deep sea oil is not something that kiwis want in their back yard.