Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson arrives at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle airport, outside Paris, on December 20, 2024. JULIEN DE ROSA / AFP
By AFP - Agence France Presse
Paul Watson freed anti-whaling activist, arrives in France
By Amelie BARON
Anti-whaling activist Paul Watson, released on Friday, has arrived in France after five months in detention in the Danish autonomous territory of Greenland due to an extradition request from Japan.
Watson, a 74-year-old Canadian-American, was released on Tuesday after Denmark refused Japan's extradition request over a confrontation with whalers in 2010. He was freed after a high-profile campaign in his support.
French President Emmanuel Macron had pressured the Danish authorities not to extradite the activist, who has applied for French nationality.
Watson landed at Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport shortly before 3 pm (1400 GMT), according to an airport source.
A smiling Watson was seen carrying his luggage through the airport terminal as armed police officers looked on.
Fans clapped, and some shouted: “Bravo!”
A woman handed him a balloon. The activist left the airport without making any statements, saying only: “Thank you” in French and English: “Thank you” in French and English.
“We didn't expect him to be released, especially before Christmas,” said Gabriela Cabrera, 49, a volunteer with Sea Shepherd, an organization founded by Watson. She said she was very happy with what she described as “a miracle.”
Another supporter, Laurence Huygues-Despointes, said he wanted to thank President Macron.
“We criticized him (Macron) a lot, but he made a commitment to him (Watson), and I hope he gets French nationality,” said the 68-year-old.
Watson, who took part in the reality TV show “Whale Wars,” founded the campaign group Sea Shepherd and the Captain Paul Watson Foundation (CPWF).
Adept at gaining publicity, he gained notoriety for “direct action” tactics, such as ramming ships and using acoustic weapons, water cannons, and stink bombs.
In the 2000s and 2010s, Sea Shepherd played a tough game of cat and mouse with Japanese ships, which tried to slaughter hundreds of whales every year for “scientific purposes.”
Watson had been imprisoned in Greenland since July because of a 2012 Japanese warrant, which accused him of causing damage to a whaling ship and injuring a whaler.
Upon his release on Tuesday, Watson announced his intention to return to France, where his two young children attend school.
Watson's legal problems have attracted support from the public and activists, including prominent British conservationist Jane Goodall.
“It's been five months, and this is the first day of freedom, so I'm feeling great,” Watson told AFP in a video call shortly after his release from the Danish autonomous territory.
Tokyo accuses Watson of injuring a Japanese crew member with a stink bomb intended to disrupt the whalers' activities during a Sea Shepherd confrontation with the ship Shonan Maru 2 in 2010.
Watson's lawyers said they have video footage proving that the crew member was not on deck when the stink bomb was dropped.
Supporters planned to hold a rally on Saturday afternoon to welcome Watson.
On Wednesday, Japan's government expressed its dismay at Watson's release.
Proponents of whaling accuse their critics of double standards, considering the methods used to produce much of the millions of tons of meat from other animals consumed every year.
amb-as/sjw/bc
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