r/whales • u/guyoffthegrid • 11d ago
Denmark frees anti-whaling activist Paul Watson and refuses Japan extradition request
https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2024/12/17/denmark-frees-anti-whaling-activist-paul-watson-and-refuses-japan-extradition-request49
u/guyoffthegrid 11d ago
“Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson was released from prison in Greenland on Tuesday and will not be extradited to Japan over criminal charges dating back to 2010, according to Danish authorities.
The US-Canadian citizen, 74, had been in custody in Greenland — an autonomous territory of Denmark — since July when he was arrested under a Japanese warrant after his ship docked at the island's capital, Nuuk.
Japan had issued an international arrest warrant for Watson, the founder and former head of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, over an encounter with a Japanese whaling research ship in 2010. Watson was accused of obstructing the crew’s official duties by ordering the captain of his own vessel to throw explosives at the whaling ship.
Denmark's justice ministry said it had rejected an extradition request by Tokyo because it had not received adequate guarantees from Japanese authorities that the time Watson had already served in custody would be counted against any sentence he would receive in Japan. There was no immediate comment from the Japanese embassy in Copenhagen.”
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u/Armageddonxredhorse 11d ago
Funny how they arrest a man for stopping a ship from doing "official duties"(I read that as international organized crime).
Good he's free.
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u/JuliaX1984 10d ago
Is it true he ordered someone to throw explosives at a ship? With other humans on it?
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u/illusivealchemist 10d ago
It was a stink bomb, with the bomb part being highly misleading lol. No weapon explosives.
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u/Scary-Lawfulness-999 10d ago
Japan has some cool stuff going on for them but fuck the whole country's government and fuck the voting population if they don't protest and cut this shit out.
This should be a deal breaker on environmental accords. It's been goi on fo decades and we are a planet are sick of their shit. Don't we just sink poachers?
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u/chenzo17 11d ago
I learned of him from a 60 minutes episode. Only thing I could think is what an ultimate badass.
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u/brydeswhale 11d ago
Well, it was nice while it lasted.
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u/Dangerous-Room4320 11d ago
Def , he endangered the life of many poor who have been whaling culturally for generations. He is basically an eco terrorist. We all love whales but killing people is also bad
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u/Willdefyyou 11d ago
Who did he kill?
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u/Dangerous-Room4320 11d ago
He is being charged for attempted murder ... just because they were picked up doesnt mean ramming people at sea and letting them drown in freezing ocean is ok
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u/Willdefyyou 11d ago
No he isn't
He was charged with “conspiration of trespassing”, “injuring and destruction of property,” and “obstruction to business,” during events said to have happened on February 11 and 15, 2010, while Watson was leading one of his many antiwhaling campaigns in the whale sanctuary in Antarctica.
🤡
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u/Armageddonxredhorse 11d ago
I don't understand how he ever got charged with anything,since he interfered with an ILLEGAL business. What now? The law protects Yakuza ?
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u/Willdefyyou 11d ago
Right?! Makes as much sense as a drug dealer going to cops because someone ripped them off lol
I thought it was really bold of them too, considering they're violating international whaling treaties but they use the scientific loophole which is absolute bullshit... We study whales too but don't build new boats to harpoon them. What scientific reason is there for having a quota and needing soo many of the same species? Obviously only for the food market. So of course it is all about money and the Yakuza is powerful
The loophole for scientific research needs to be closed and then arrest them like they should be fucking doing!!! Shouldn't need volunteer vigilantes risking their lives and resorting to this...
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u/Armageddonxredhorse 10d ago
Exactly,the fact that they gave illegal whalers any sort of benefit of doubt shows they aren't interested in justice.
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u/Human_Style_6920 8d ago
Paul Watson is a hero! F those people for arresting him and screw u Japan! Go watch "In The Heart of the Sea!" 🐋 🐳 🐋 🖕🖕🖕
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u/7ig4 11d ago edited 11d ago
Denmark put him in Jail in the first place! And then needed 6 Months to come to the conclusion it was a bad decision. They are slaughtering Whales in the Faroe Islands which was probably their intention to try to get him out of the way.
And this stupid Sea Shepherd Flag, they did nothing to help him! They kept quiet and took all the donations from the people that don't know that they kicked him out. Shame on them!