Sea Shepherd founder and anti-whaling activist Captain Paul Watson arrested in Greenland

The renowned anti-whaling activist and co-founder of Greenpeace, Captain Paul Watson, was reportedly arrested on 21 July in Greenland by Danish police. Watson, a Canadian-Amercian who has dedicated his life to protecting marine life, was taken into custody under an international arrest warrant issued by Japan. 

The arrest occurred in Nuuk, Greenland’s capital, as Watson arrived on the 72-metre flagship John Paul DeJoria. According to the Captain Paul Watson Foundation (CPWF) statement on social media, Danish federal police and a SWAT team boarded the vessel as it docked for refuelling. The ship was enroute to the Northwest Passage as part of ‘Operation Kangei Maru,’ an initiative aimed at the interception of Japan’s newly built whaling ship, the Kangei Maru, in the North Pacific. 

The foundation believes the arrest is connected to a previous Interpol Red Notice issued for Watson’s anti-whaling activities in the Antarctic. Japan’s Antarctic research whaling programme, JARPA, was declared illegal by the International Court of Justice in 2014. The organisation’s lawyers had reportedly been informed that this previous notice had been withdrawn. 

Locky MacLean, ship operation director for CPWF, said in an online statement: “We’re completely shocked, as the Red Notice disappeared a few months ago. We were surprised because it could mean it had been erased or made confidential. We understand now that Japan made it confidential to lure Paul into a false sense of security. We implore the Danish government to release Captain Watson and not entertain this politically motivated request.”

As of now, Watson is in custody, and it remains unclear whether Denmark will extradite him to Japan, where he may face a maximum prison sentence of 15 years. The incident has sparked a social media campaign, #freepaulwatson, as supporters rally for his release. There is also an online petition with over 3,000 signatures currently.

The CPWF has included an email template on its website for supporters to use to contact the Ministry of Justice in Copenhagen. According to Omar Todd, CEO of CPWF’s latest Instagram post, Watson has chosen to appeal and will be detained in Nuuk until August 15. The post also mentions there will be no bail due to Watson fleeing house arrest in Germany in 2012. 

This reported arrest marks another milestone in Watson’s long history of environmental activism. The situation continues to develop.