Rainbow Warrior

Uus-Meremaa maguskartuli ehk kumara pealinnas Dargaville-s suundusin lõunapausil kauni vaatega muuseumi, kus kohtusin Greenpeace-i lipulaeva Rainbow Warrior I mastidega, mis püstitatud muuseumiesisele platsile. Teistkordselt ristus minu tee Rainbow Warrioriga Northland-i Vaikse ookeani kaldal Kerikeri-s, kus asub laevale pühendatud mälestusmärk ning kus kuigi kaugel rannikust lebab mere põhjas ka laev ise, olles tänasel päeval üks huvitavamatest sukeldumispaikadest Meremaa rannikul. Kolmandat korda ristus minu tee Rainbow Warrioriga Auckland-i külje all Waitakere-s, kus hetkel WWOOF-in. Nimelt suundusime ühel hommikul abistama pikaaegset Greenpeace-i aktivisti Jody Lusk-i, kes osales 1995. Aastal Rainbow Warrior II meeskonnas tuumakatsetuste vastasel demonstratsioonil Mururoa atollil. Laev peeti prantsuse söjalaeva poolt kinni ning selle käigus tekitati Jody-le tösiseid seljavigastusi, mille käes ta vaevleb senini peale korduvaid operatsioone.  Rainbow Warriori kolmas ilmutus minu teel oli ilmselge märk sellest, et ennast teemasse sügavamalt pühendada.

The Rainbow Warrior was built in 1955, in Aberdeen, Scotland as a trawler named Sir William Hardy. She served until 1977 when she was put up for sale and was re-launched on April 29, 1978 as Rainbow Warrior, the first ship to serve with Greenpeace. Further modifications followed, with the replacement of the engines in 1981 and the fitting of sails in a ketch rig in 1985. The Rainbow Warrior was Greenpeace's flagship vessel and was used to support protests against French nuclear testing in the Pacific during the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was berthed at Marsden Wharf in Auckland July 1985 to lead a flotilla of yachts protesting against French nuclear testing at the Mururoa Atoll in the Tuamotu Archipelago of French Polynesia. For the 1985 tests Greenpeace intended to monitor the impact of nuclear tests and place protesters on the island to illegally monitor the blasts. The French Government infiltrated the Canada-based organisation and discovered these plans. The Rainbow Warrior was sabotaged and sunk on July 10, 1985 by two explosive devices attached to the hull by operatives of the French intelligence service (DGSE). One of the twelve people on board, photographer Fernando Pereira, returned to the ship after the first explosion to attempt to retrieve his equipment, and was killed when the ship was sunk by the second larger explosion. The revelations of French involvement caused a political scandal. French intelligence service agents Alain Mafart and Dominique Prieur were eventually arrested for their part in the bombing and charged with manslaughter. After facing international pressure France agreed to pay compensation to Greenpeace. The wreck of the Rainbow Warrior was too extensive for economic repair and the vessel was scuttled in Matauri Bay in the Cavalli Islands, New Zealand on 2 December 1987, to serve as a dive wreck and artificial reef to promote marine life. The hull is now covered with a large colony of vari-coloured sea anemones. The masts were salvaged and now stand outside the Dargaville Museum.