Environment Anti-whaling campaigner arrested, possibly extradited to Japan

thomas · 22 Jul 2024

Greenland police announced the arrest of veteran environmental activist and anti-whaling campaigner Paul Watson on Sunday, based on an international arrest warrant from Japan. Watson was detained when his ship docked in Nuuk, Greenland's capital. He will appear before a district court to determine if he will be extradited to Japan. The Captain Paul Watson Foundation reported that over a dozen police officers boarded the vessel and arrested Watson in handcuffs while refuelling. The ship, with 25 volunteer crew members, was heading to the North Pacific to intercept a new Japanese whaling vessel. The foundation believes the arrest is linked to a previous Red Notice for Watson's anti-whaling activities in the Antarctic.

Watson, a 73-year-old Canadian-American citizen, is a former head of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society whose direct action tactics, including high-seas confrontations with whaling vessels, have drawn support from A-list celebrities and featured in the reality television series "Whale Wars." However, it has also brought him into confrontation with authorities. He was detained in Germany in 2012 on a Costa Rican extradition warrant. He skipped bail after learning that he was also sought for extradition by Japan, which has accused him of endangering whalers' lives during operations in the Antarctic Ocean. He has since lived in countries including France and the United States. Watson, who left Sea Shepherd in 2022 to establish his own organization, was also a leading member of Greenpeace but left in 1977 amid disagreements over his aggressive tactics. According to his foundation, Watson's current ship, the M/Y John Paul DeJoria, was due to sail through the Northwest Passage to the North Pacific to confront a newly built Japanese factory whaling ship, "a murderous enemy devoid of compassion and empathy hell-bent on destroying the most intelligent self-aware, sentient beings in the sea."

Anti-whaling campaigner Paul Watson arrested in Greenland. He faces possible extradition to Japan

Greenland police say they have apprehended veteran environmental activist and anti-whaling campaigner Paul Watson on an international arrest warrant issued by Japan.

apnews.com

From Wikipedia:

In April 2010, the Japanese Coast Guard obtained an arrest warrant for Watson "...on suspicion of ordering sabotage activities against Japan's whaling fleet", and Interpol has listed him as wanted at the request of Japan. The red notice has the charges issued by Japan as "Breaking into the Vessel, Damage to Property, Forcible Obstruction of Business, Injury". In March 2012, Interpol issued a "written statement to all 190 member countries, making it clear that it would not publish a Red Notice" for Watson's detention, but it reversed that position in September 2012. In both statements, Interpol stated that a "Red Notice is not an international arrest warrant" and that it is "a request for any country to identify or locate an individual with a view to their provisional arrest and extradition per the country's national laws".

From 2010:

Paul Watson: Sea Shepherd's stern 'warrior' defies Japanese whalers

Environmental campaigner Paul Watson has lost one of his boats in a confrontation but is determined to save the oceans from 'the greed of man'

www.theguardian.com

thomas · 3 Aug 2024

Japan has formally requested Denmark to extradite anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, who is currently detained in Greenland. The activist was arrested last month on a Japanese warrant. The Japanese government is seeking Watson's extradition to face trial in Japan. While Denmark has yet to respond to the request, Japan has pledged to continue diplomatic efforts to secure Watson's return. Meanwhile, French President Macron was pressing Danish authorities not to extradite arrested anti-whaling activist Paul Watson to Japan.

Japan asks Denmark to extradite activist Paul Watson, accused of obstructing a whaling research ship - The Mainichi

TOKYO (AP) -- Japan has asked Denmark to extradite anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, who has been in custody in Greenland since his arrest last month

mainichi.jp

Macron urges against anti-whaling activist's extradition

Japan is one of the last three countries in the world to permit commercial whaling along with Iceland and Norway.

www.japantimes.co.jp

Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson faces potential imprisonment in Japan following his arrest in Greenland. He could be sentenced to up to 15 years in prison if convicted on charges related to his past confrontations with Japanese whaling vessels. Watson's arrest stems from a 2010 incident where he allegedly obstructed a Japanese whaling ship.

Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson could face up to 15 years’ prison in Japan if convicted

Watson, founder of Sea Shepherd and co-founder of Greenpeace, has been arrested on an international warrant and is facing charges including accomplice to assault and ship trespass

www.theguardian.com

dracuella · 5 Aug 2024

This is a case that really divides people here in Denmark. On one hand, we, as a nation, benefit from the international crime cooperation and as such want to do what we can to pay back what we get. On the other hand, public opinion is that despite his vigilante operations, Watson's actions are considered just since Japan's whaling has been deemed illegal by the IJC in 2014. People in general also find whaling barbaric and repulsive and a leftover from times when it was necessary to feed a nation which is no longer the case.
It doesn't help that it recently came to light that whaling in both Japan and Iceland is financially unsustainable and that the industry, at least in Japan, receives substantial government funding without which it wouldn't be able to survive. Add to that that the general populace don't seem to even want whale meat anymore and that everyone thinks the Danish government is just sucking up to Japan and you have most of the Danish population on the side of Sea Shepheard.

mdchachi · 5 Aug 2024

dracuella said:
This is a case that really divides people here in Denmark. On one hand, we, as a nation, benefit from the international crime cooperation and as such want to do what we can to pay back what we get. On the other hand, public opinion is that despite his vigilante operations, Watson's actions are considered just since Japan's whaling has been deemed illegal by the IJC in 2014. People in general also find whaling barbaric and repulsive and a leftover from times when it was necessary to feed a nation which is no longer the case.
It doesn't help that it recently came to light that whaling in both Japan and Iceland is financially unsustainable and that the industry, at least in Japan, receives substantial government funding without which it wouldn't be able to survive. Add to that that the general populace don't seem to even want whale meat anymore and that everyone thinks the Danish government is just sucking up to Japan and you have most of the Danish population on the side of Sea Shepheard.

Plus the justice system in Japan has some serious flaws.

dracuella · 5 Aug 2024

mdchachi said:
Plus the justice system in Japan has some serious flaws.

I have no doubt that should he be extradited to Japan, they will set an example with him simply because no one should tell Japan what to do. This feels like a politically hot potato where the government have to do something or else they lose face. I'm an outsider, though, so I could be reading the news incorrectly.

thomas · 2 Dec 2024

The Guardian interviewed Paul Watson in his Greenland prison cell. Watson, who will soon turn 74, said that if extradited to Japan, he could see a jail sentence of up to 15 years and would no longer be able to return home.

‘If I’m sent to Japan, I’m not coming home’: jailed anti-whaler defiant in face of extradition threat

Captain Paul Watson talks about his arrest on behalf of the Japanese government, his ‘interesting’ Greenland prison, and separation from his children

www.theguardian.com

thomas · 18 Dec 2024

Yesterday, Paul Watson was released from detention in Greenland after Denmark refused a Japanese extradition request over a 2010 clash with whalers.

Thank you, Denmark.

Greenland police announced in a statement that Paul Watson, 74, was released at 8:46 am local time, following the Ministry of Justice's decision regarding his extradition case. Watson's lawyer, Julie Stage, confirmed his release, stating that they had just been informed by the Ministry of Justice that he would not be extradited. Documents seen by AFP revealed that Denmark's decision was influenced by the length of Watson's detention after his arrest and the projected time for a potential extradition. The ministry also took into account that the alleged offenses for which extradition was sought occurred over 14 years ago, as well as the general nature of those alleged offenses. The ministry explained in a statement that their decision was based on a comprehensive assessment of the specific circumstances of the case.

Japan 'regrets' release of anti-whaling activist Paul Watson

The 74-year-old Canadian-American activist was released after Copenhagen turned down Tokyo's request to bring him to Japan.

www.japantimes.co.jp

Statement on the Release of Paul Watson

Paul Watson, founder and former President of Sea Shepherd, has been arrested in Nuuk, Greenland. Though Paul stepped down from his leadership role years ago, his arrest brings international attention to the essential and ongoing fight for ocean conservation.

seashepherd.org

musicisgood · 18 Dec 2024

I've had whale meat patties and actually they're pretty tasty. I like them.
Whaling should never be banned . And what right does one organization have the right to tell the Japanese they cannot do whaling anymore.

thomas · 18 Dec 2024

Apart from the conservation aspects, whale meat is no longer part of the Japanese diet. There is no more or only very little demand. Secondly, billions of precious tax yen are wasted to keep a dying industry alive. How about diverting those funds to conservation, education, or health care?

Insisting on whale meat would be like Americans insisting on buffalo burgers.

mdchachi · 18 Dec 2024

If only Japan had a Mossad equivalent. They could extradite the terrorist to Japan in secrecy.

thomas said:
Insisting on whale meat would be like Americans insisting on buffalo burgers.

We don't insist on them but they are available. Every local grocery store has ground buffalo (bison) and it's not unusual for restaurants to offer buffalo burgers. Of course they are farm-raised not picked out of Yellowstone National Park.

thomas · 18 Dec 2024

Arguably, very few people see a terrorist in Paul Watson. Japan has more significant issues to deal with than persecuting a conservationist who damaged government property and threw stink bombs.

mdchachi · 18 Dec 2024

thomas said:
Arguably, very few people see a terrorist in Paul Watson. Japan has more significant issues to deal with than persecuting a conservationist who damaged government property and threw stink bombs.

True. They should probably first go after the news announcer and the shrine graffiti artists who fled to China. At least they inconvenienced him and had him detained for five months.

dracuella · 18 Dec 2024

musicisgood said:
I've had whale meat patties and actually they're pretty tasty. I like them.
Whaling should never be banned . And what right does one organization have the right to tell the Japanese they cannot do whaling anymore.

It's not just one organisation, though, it's the IWC - the International Whaling Commission. It consists of 88 countries around the world working together to prevent whales from going extinct, something which is happening even without whaling. Besides, it's not just whales who suffer from whaling, it's the entire ocean. They're a huge part of the oceanic ecosystem, store immense amounts of carbon in their bodies, and indirectly contribute to carbon capture by providiung nutrients to plankton which in turn absorb CO2.

And then there's the reason for whaling which is two-fold: Firstly, they claim it's a part of their heritage and yes, they have been whaling for a long time, just like most other coastal countries in the world. Considering the numbers, however, whaling only become big in Japan after WWII and most likely as a reaction to the scarcity of meat in general. Nowadays, however, the Japanese appetite for whale meat is at an all time low, and a lot of it is used for promotion through school lunch programmes. There is so little demand that sales don't even cover the cost of whaling and the government has been footing the deficit with in approx. $50mill a year:

The commercial hunts yield approximately 40 percent less meat than Japan's research whaling but consumption of whale meat in Japan has declined by almost 99 percent since 1962, and even this reduced quantity is proving hard to sell. Kyodo Senpaku, the company that conducts the whaling and sells the meat, remains dependent on annual government subsidies that have remained at the same high levels despite the reduced whaling effort, but the government has indicated that these will be withdrawn in a few years. In July 2020, even before 124 Bryde's whales were landed, Kyodo Senpaku announced deeply discounted prices for schools and medical institutions in an effort to boost sales of their meat.

Secondly, they claim 'research' as a reason for whaling but the research they are doing is already well-documented or can be conducted without lethal means:

A good example involves the sperm whale aspect of the JARPN program. The Government of Japan claims it needs to kill ten sperm whales each year to learn what they eat. Yet the diet of this species is well known - not surprisingly, since more than a half a million sperm whales were killed and examined in the 20th century alone. Furthermore, the ecological significance of the sperm whale's predation on squid cannot be meaningfully assessed without estimating the abundance of squid in the ocean - a question to which marine biologists world-wide would like to know the answer

So all these points considered, why is Japan still whaling? The populace is indifferent to the meat, the process is deficit-ridden, and has no scientific basis. Perhaps we can take a second and appreciate the words of Katarzyna Cwiertka, a Japanese studies professor and author of Modern Japanese Cuisine: Food, Power and National Identity, pointing out that "most of the people in high levels of Japanese government are older men - men old enough to have grown up eating whale meat as schoolchildren."

Petaris · 19 Dec 2024

dracuella said:
So all these points considered, why is Japan still whaling?

I bet it is greed. They are getting government funding, I bet someone is making money off of that.

thomas · 23 Jul 2025

Interpol has decided to remove Paul Watson from its Red Notice list, according to sources on Tuesday. The decision follows recent developments, notably Denmark's refusal to extradite Watson to Japan. Interpol has since informed all of its member states of the change.
Watson had been placed on the international wanted list after the Japan Coast Guard issued an arrest warrant, accusing him of disrupting Japan's research whaling activities in the Antarctic Ocean in 2010.

In July last year, he was detained in the Danish territory of Greenland, but local authorities freed him in December. After his release, Interpol's Commission for the Control of Files, which oversees the organization's handling of personal information, suspended Watson from the wanted list at his request. This was followed by the decision to remove him from the list. Interpol emphasized that the decision is not related to the substance of Japan's allegations against Watson. Watson wrote on social media that the decision would end Japan's "politically motivated" persecution.

Interpol removes anti-whaling activist Paul Watson from wanted list

Interpol based its decision on new developments, including Denmark's refusal to extradite him to Japan where there is an arrest warrant for him.

www.japantimes.co.jp

dracuella · 24 Jul 2025

thomas said:
Interpol has decided to remove Paul Watson from its Red Notice list, according to sources on Tuesday. The decision follows recent developments, notably Denmark's refusal to extradite Watson to Japan. Interpol has since informed all of its member states of the change.
Watson had been placed on the international wanted list after the Japan Coast Guard issued an arrest warrant, accusing him of disrupting Japan's research whaling activities in the Antarctic Ocean in 2010.

It does make me wonder what the real reason is for the removal from the wanted list. Denmark refusing to hand him over to Japan can't be the only reason.

I just checked Danish media which state that:

Interpol has today decided that the red notice issued for Paul Watson for the past 13 years is not proportionate and must for this reason be permanently deleted.

Original Danish text:
»Interpol har i dag truffet afgørelse om, at den red notice, der har været udstedt på Paul Watson i de sidste 13 år, ikke er proportional og derfor skal slettes permanent« (source)

mdchachi · 24 Jul 2025

See that's why Greenland should be become a U.S. territory. The U.S. wouldn't have let him get away.

salyavin · 2 Aug 2025

Petaris said:
I bet it is greed. They are getting government funding, I bet someone is making money off of that.

Maybe some of that and some of other nations trying to tell us what to do well screw that. Well England says the US should give up guns, well screw that.

On diet some rural regions do eat whale, some parts of Nagasaki prefecture for example. Agree it is not a national dish often eaten.

Lothor · 2 Aug 2025

I once read a nice description of the whaling issue in a book about Japan. Japan has to be (or had to be?) very careful not to upset the US, the country it heavily depends on for security, and there's some resentment of this fact. Whaling is the perfect issue for those resentful people to let off a bit of steam without doing any (political) harm. So Japan's fuss about whaling is similar to a toddler having a harmless tantrum that their parents basically ignore or look on indulgently.

Environment Anti-whaling campaigner arrested, possibly extradited to Japan

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