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Two anti-whaling protesters who boarded a Japanese whaling ship in the Southern Ocean have been released. The transfer defuses a tense situation on the Antarctic seas, but activists¹ say they will continue to harass² the Japanese fleet.

两名登上日本在南冰洋上的捕鲸船、反对捕鲸的抗议者被释放。这一行动缓解了南极地区的紧张局面，但是活动人士说，他们将继续骚扰日本捕鲸船队。

The transfer of the two campaigners Thursday has ended a tense standoff in the icy waters of the Southern Ocean.

星期四两名活动分子的移交结束了在南冰洋的冰冷洋面上的紧张对峙。

The two men from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society had boarded the Japanese whaler Yushin Maru No. 2 on Tuesday. They ostensibly wanted to deliver a letter protesting the annual Japanese whale hunt, but the boarding - captured on video by their colleagues - was also meant to give international visibility to their anti-whaling campaign.

这两名海洋守护协会的成员星期二登上日本捕鲸船勇新丸二号。他们声称要递交一份函件抗议日本每年的捕鲸活动，但是他们的同事摄下他们登上甲板行动的录象，旨在让他们反对捕鲸的活动具有国际知名度。

After jumping aboard the Japanese ship, Briton Giles Lane and Australian Benjamin Potts were detained by the Japanese crew for almost three days.

英国人贾尔斯.莱恩和澳大利亚人本杰明.波茨一跳上日本船只的甲板就立即被日本船员扣留，扣留几乎达三天之久。

During that time the whaling fleet and the protesters traded accusations³ of kidnapping, piracy⁴, and even "terrorism."

在这段时间里，这支捕鲸船队与抗议者不断相互指责绑架、海盗行为甚至恐怖主义等罪名。

The Australian government finally offered to end the impasse⁵ by sending a customs ship, the Oceanic Viking, to retrieve⁶ the activists.

澳大利亚政府最终提出派遣一艘海关武装巡逻艇‘大洋洲维京人号’来接回这两名被扣留的活动人士，以结束僵局。

Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith says the transfer worked smoothly⁷ because of Canberra's close diplomatic ties with Tokyo.

澳大利亚外交部长斯蒂芬.史密斯说，有关人员的移交顺利进行，因为澳大利亚当局和日本当局关系密切。

"If we didn't have such a strong relationship with Japan, then over the last couple of days we wouldn't have seen both the Australian government and the Japanese government at one wanting to secure and affect the safe and speedy transfer of Benjamin Potts and the U.K. national," said Smith.

他说：“如果我们和日本没有如此牢固的关系，那么这两天来就不会看到澳大利亚政府和日本政府都一致希望快速促成波茨和那位英国人士被安全并迅速地移交。”

The Japanese had offered earlier to send the men back to their ship, if the protesters would stop harassing⁸ the whaling fleet. The captain of the protest ship refused to accept the condition.

日本方面曾提议，如果抗议人士停止骚扰日本捕鲸船队，那么就把这两人送回他们的船只。而抗议船只的船长却拒绝接受这一条件。

The men are now back on board the Sea Shepherd vessel⁹. Potts, the Australian, says the campaign against the whalers will continue.

如今这两人已经返回海洋守护协会的船只。澳大利亚人波茨说，反对捕鲸的活动将继续进行。

"Hopefully we'll continue with the chase until such time that we have to head back - same as before, we'll continue to harass the Japanese fleet and prevent them from whaling," he said.

他说：“希望我们将一如既往继续追踪，直到我们必须返回的时候，我们将继续骚扰这支日本船队并且阻止他们捕鲸。”

The Japanese plan to kill about a thousand whales during the Antarctic summer. Now that the two Sea Shepherd members have been released, the controversial whaling expedition will resume.

日本方面计划在南极夏令季节捕杀约一千条鲸鱼。现在既然已释放了这两名海洋守护协会的成员，他们引发争议的捕鲸活动将继续进行。

The Australian government calls the whale hunt an unnecessary slaughter¹⁰, while the Japanese say their fleet is conducting scientific research.

澳大利亚政府声称，这种捕鲸行动是没有意义的屠杀，而日本则说，他们的船队在进行科学研究。

Australian police are investigating the actions of two men. Law experts say the pair are subject to Australian law, and could face a range of charges including a criminal act of terrorism.

澳大利亚警方正在调查这两名抗议者的行动。法律专家说，这两人得按澳大利亚法律依法查办，可能面临包括恐怖罪行在内的一系列指控。

Australia sent the Oceanic Viking to the Antarctic last month to collect evidence that could be used in international court action against the Japanese whaling program.

澳大利亚上个月曾派遣‘大洋洲维京人号’前往南极收集证据，并可能在反对日本捕鲸计划的国际法庭行动中使用有关证据。