The Dutch-flagged "Esperanza," which trailed Japan's whaling fleet for more than a month in the Antarctic, sailed into Yokohama, a major port just south of Tokyo.

The 23 people aboard the vessel have planned a week of campaigning in hopes of building sympathy in whale-hunting Japan for the giant mammals.

"We're here and we're official," Greenpeace spokeswoman Sara Holden said from aboard the Esperanza. "It took a lot of effort to do so, but it's important for us to come and to try to really start a debate."

The Esperanza arrived in Japanese waters Tuesday but was unable to dock after the agent handling its paperwork backed out under pressure from Japan's sailors' union.

Greenpeace finally acted as its own agent to secure docking privileges as the ship drifted at sea.

Japan, which argues that whale meat is part of its culture, kills some 1,000 whales a year, mostly in the Antarctic Ocean which Australia and New Zealand consider a sanctuary for the animals.

Greenpeace said it would invite diplomats from countries that are members of the International Whaling Commission (IWC) to tour the Esperanza, which was flying a banner reading, "We love Japan, but not whaling in the sanctuary."

The IWC banned commercial whaling in 1986 on the grounds that the mammals were endangered and that the hunt was cruel.

Japan uses a loophole that allows hunting for scientific research, while campaigning for an outright resumption of commercial whaling. Japan bristles at what it calls Western insensitivity to its culture, but critics point to a glut of whale meat on the market, with a government-backed body now trying to promote whale through school lunches.

"What is important is that the information is not being represented to the public on whether they want to use taxpayers' money on a programme that doesn't have any scientific or economic justification," Holden said.

Earlier this year, activists of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a more militant splinter group of Greenpeace, threw acid on the whalers' mother ship, the Nisshin Maru, leading Japan to brand environmentalists "terrorists."

A fire later broke out on the Nisshin Maru, leaving one crewman dead. While both sides said the fire was unconnected to the protests, the incident forced Japan to cut short the hunt after killing little more than half the intended catch.

Greenpeace condemned the militant activists and offered to help the Nisshin Maru, although Japan says it refused any assistance.

earlier related report
Anti-whaling protesters appeal to Japan to dock
Tokyo (AFP) March 30 - Greenpeace appealed Friday to Japan to let a boat of anti-whaling protesters dock, accusing Tokyo of trying to stifle debate as the vessel drifted outside Tokyo for a third day.

The Dutch-flagged "Esperanza" was unable to arrive as scheduled Wednesday due to objections by the sailors' union, which led the agent handling the paperwork to pull out.

But the environmental group said it believed the Tokyo government was behind the decision to bar the Espernaza, which is on a mission to build sympathy for whales in Japan.

"It would be easy for them to say that we should be allowed in," Greenpeace spokeswoman Sara Holden said of the government. "It's convenient that the seamen's union is objecting, but I think it goes further than that."

"It's as much a question of the way that the government views the idea of freedom of speech as anything else," she said by telephone from the Esperanza.

"We don't plan to leave, we plan to continue trying to get in, because we believe we have a right to do so," she said.

The 23 crew members of 10 nationalities have asked their respective embassies to intervene, she said.

The Esperanza trailed home Japan's whaling fleet, which returned early after an embarrassing fire on board the mother ship left one crew member dead.

The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, a hardline offshoot of Greenpeace, had thrown acid on the mother ship, the Nisshin Maru, although both sides said the crippling fire was unlikely to be connected to the protesters.

The All Japan Seamen's Union cited the protests to bar the entry of the Espernaza, saying that it had no desire for dialogue with Greenpeace, which Japan calls a "terrorist" group.

Greenpeace has condemned more militant activists and said the Esperanza helped the troubled Nisshin Maru, although Japanese authorities denied accepting any help.

Japan, which argues that whale meat is part of its culture, has set a quota to hunt around 1,000 whales a year, mostly in the Antarctic Ocean.

It uses a loophole in a global ban on whaling that allows killing the animals for research.

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