Australia is expected to pay hundreds of thousands of dollars to secure the rescue of three Australian anti-whaling activists who boarded a Japanese whaling ship earlier this week, the Herald Sun newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The three men were from the conservation group Forest Rescue Australia and got aboard the Japanese Shonan Maru 2 vessel when it was in Australian waters. Sea Shepherd said the activists got on board the ship in order to prevent it from following one of the activist group’s vessels and to raise awareness against Japan’s whaling efforts.

“We have made a number of representations very firmly to the Japanese government,” Australian Attorney General Nicola Roxon told the Herald Sun.

The three activists were at risk of being taken back to Japan, where they would likely face prosecution for trespassing.

The Australian government had also suggested that Sea Shepherd should help in the release of the activists. 

Sea Shepherd skipper Paul Watson has rebuked those suggestions, saying that it “is absurd,” according to the group’s website on Monday.

“You never ask this of poachers, yachtsmen, and eco-tourist operators because I gather you believe their activities are more valid and thus more worthy of spending tax dollars on to bail them out of trouble,” he said.