Japanese Whaling Ship Found Guilty of Violating Environmental Agreement

The Japanese whaler Bluebird has been stripped of it's Panamanian flag. From Sea Shepherd:

The Japanese whaling fleet supply ship Oriental Bluebird has been de-flagged and fined by the Panamanian Registry after being found guilty of:

Using the ship for purposes it was not licensed for (i.e. carrying whale meat rather than oil)

Violating the MARPOL convention (a treaty designed to eliminate the deliberate, negligent or accidental release of oil and other harmful substances from ships into the marine environment) after illegally re-fuelling whaling vessels in Antarctic waters.

The illegal operations of the Oriental Bluebird underscore the illegality of the entire Japanese whaling fleet. Japanese whalers are targeting endangered whales in the legally established Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary in violation of a global moratorium on commercial whaling.

I'm surprised that nobody has ever put pressure on the Panamanians to not register whaling vessels in the first place.