Māori voyaging captain Raihania Tipoki and a team from Greenpeace delivered a message to the Amazon Warrior, to get out of New Zealand's waters. It is the largest seismic blasting ship in the world. Their message represents the voice of 80 hapū in Ikaroa Rawhiti.
The Amazon Warrior in action off the Wairarapa Coast is an unwelcome presence for Ikaroa Rawhiti hapū.
“The main thing is to get to the Amazon Warrior and tell them to stop what they're doing and to turn around and go back to Castle Point,” says Tipoki.
This morning Tipoki and the Greenpeace team left Castle Point via inflatable boat to deliver that message and to monitor their movements.
“We want to show what the vessel is doing, to record and to listen to their blasting on the ocean floor and to speak directly to the captain.”
Back on dry land, 14,000 people have signed a petition against the Stat Oil in NZ waters.
Protestor Tere Harrison says, “The bigger picture is to hand the petition over to these international oil companies so that it'll reach Norway, who are in charge, so they know the indigenous people of this land want them gone.”
Activist Mereana Pitman says, “You know I think the message is for people like Hekia to is to stop giving those licenses and stop signing away our rights and our resources.”
The Amazon Warrior arrived in New Zealand last November to begin its search for oil.