T

he Rainbow Warrior, a Greenpeace campaigning vessel, docked at Benoa Harbor in Denpasar on Friday morning to start its two-day campaign highlighting Indonesia's biodiversity and the issues it faces.

A Hindu blessing, Balinese dance and a performance by Balinese environmentalists-cum-rockers Navicula, along with an invited crowd, warmly welcomed the 58-meter environmentally friendly vessel, with a special cheer for Balinese crew member, I Made Agus Swesnawa. As a return gesture the crew sang its own song highlighting the plight of the oceans and our responsibilities to protect them.

The Bali visit is part of its month-long Indonesian tour entitled '100% Indonesia: Protecting Our Forest And Oceans Together' that started on May 9 in Papua and will end in Jakarta on June 10. The tour also sees the launch of Greenpeace Southeast Asia's Oceans Campaign in Indonesia with a call for all Indonesians to become 'ocean defenders' and help protect their country's seas.

While in Bali, the vessel and its crew will focus on raising awareness of environmental issues, including through discussions and a photo exhibition. The Rainbow Warrior also welcomed the public eager to see around the vessel, as well as learn about Greenpeace marine campaign activities in Indonesia.

'We have invited students from several schools in Denpasar to take a tour around the ship, as well as all the public,' Arifsyah M. Nasution, oceans campaigner for Greenpeace Indonesia said.

Rainbow Warrior is a legendary vessel used by Greenpeace to campaign across the world for more than three decades. The first Rainbow Warrior was launched in 1978 and, while protesting nuclear tests in New Zealand, was blown up by the French secret service in 1985.

In October 2011, Greenpeace launched its newest incarnation of Rainbow Warrior, claimed as one of the most environmentally friendly ships ever built. She is fitted with scientific equipment to enable on-board scientific research and a satellite communications system able to stream live footage from the scene of environmental crimes direct to the world's media, making denial and cover-ups far more difficult.

The Rainbow Warrior will depart Bali for Jakarta early Sunday morning, and is slated to dock in Jakarta on June 10. After Jakarta, the Greenpeace ship, Esperanza, will continue the tour to Thailand and the Philippines to call for the protection of the ocean throughout the region.