Japan is seeking the extradition of the 73-year-old American-Canadian activist, who expects him to remain in prison in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, unless Denmark makes a quick decision.
What will happen to Paul Watson? The Greenlandic courts will rule on Wednesday, September 4, on whether the environmental activist should be kept in detention pending the Danish government’s decision on Japan’s extradition request for a case related to his fight to defend whales.
Defenders of the 73-year-old American-Canadian activist expect him to remain in prison in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, unless Denmark makes a quick decision.
His team denounces false accusations
Watson, the founder of Sea Shepherd and the oceans foundation that bears his name, was arrested on July 21 in the capital of the autonomous Danish territory while en route with his ship, the John Paul DeJoria, to intercept a new Japanese whaling factory ship.
Japan is seeking his extradition, having revived a request issued in 2012 via an Interpol red notice. It accuses him of being jointly responsible for damage and injuries on board a Japanese whaling ship two years earlier as part of a campaign led by Sea Shepherd.
Watson’s advisers say the Japanese claim is based on false claims, which they would like to demonstrate by presenting video clips of the events at the Nuuk court hearing.
“We expect the court to extend his detention because we were unable to present our evidence at the last hearing and we anticipate the same will happen this time,” one of his lawyers, Jonas Christoffersen, told AFP.
“The judge says it is not his role to study them because the case has been transferred to the police,” he regretted.
Legal steps
For its part, the Danish Ministry of Justice confirmed that “the examination of the official extradition request” is “in progress”, without giving a timetable for its decision.
“This is a procedure with several legal steps, and the Ministry of Justice is currently awaiting the legal assessment of the Greenlandic police and the Director of Public Prosecutions,” he told AFP.
Paul Watson is accused of injuring a Japanese sailor in the face by throwing a stink bomb – butyric acid – to hinder the work of whalers.
But for the activist’s advice, the video material proves that the crew member who Japanese authorities say was injured was not even present when the stink bomb was thrown on board.
A controversial figure in environmental circles, particularly because of his strong-arm methods, the activist obtained the signatures of 100,000 people on the petition demanding his release. On the political level, Paris asked Copenhagen not to extradite him.
From his cell in Nuuk Prison, a modern grey building set into the side of the rocks, Paul Watson shows his determination to continue his fight.
