Petition launched by Pierre Niney, Nagui, Hugo Clément and Brigitte Bardot collects 300,000 signatures

A petition to demand the release of Paul Watson, eco-activist, whale advocate and founder of Sea-Shepered has been launched. oacute; launched after his arrest in Greenland. Many celebrities are among the signatories.

On Sunday July 21, Captain Paul Watson, co-founder of the environmental organization Greenpeace and founder of Sea Shepered, was arrested. stopé upon arriving à Nuuk, Greenland, & on board the shipJohn-Paul-DeJoria. The American-Canadian activist was stopping in the autonomous territory under Danish rule to refuel. He and his crew of 25 volunteers were preparing to continue their journey to the Northwest Passage as part of Operation Kangei Maru, a mission to intercept a Japanese whaling factory ship in the North Pacific.

Why was Paul Watson arrested? ?

"We have come to arrest Paul due to an arrest warrant êissued by Japan" saidé the head of the Danish Federal Police assault team at the scene of the arrest. In question, a red notice from the Interpol organization, due to an international arrest warrant issued to the police. Japan's request, 12 years ago, for anti-hunting activities the whale in Antarctica which would have causedé damages and injuries in 2010.

"Sea Shepherd's missions under the command of Captain Paul Watson had made it possible to rescue more than 5,000 whales from Japanese harpoons. This had been worth à Paul Watson accusations of '" &eac;coterrorist" &eac;from the Japanese government" specifies the Sea Shepered association on its official website. This Tuesday, the investigative media Vakita announces that "President Emmanuel Macron has taken up the matter and that French diplomacy is ç the work to try to obtain the release of Paul Watson.

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Threatened extradition to Japan

Paul Watson is currently in pretrial detention, facing extradition to Japan and potentially a very harsh sentence. At this time, Japanese authorities have not responded or confirmed any negotiations over his arrest and/or extradition. A spokeswoman for the Japanese authorities simply stated that the local coast guard “will continue to take appropriate measures in coordination with the entities concerned”.

According to those close to the activist, if he is extradited, Paul Watson risks ending his days behind bars: "We know that if ç happened, we'll never see it again" indicates Lamya Essemlali, president of Sea Shepherd France, comments relayed in the columns of Le Monde. In addition, the charges he could face are not known. "Japanese judicial and prison systems are totally inadequate and violative of human rights" warns lawyer François Zimeray in the daily newspaper.

A petition launched to demand his release

Voilaà why, a petition to request the release of Paul Watson was quickly put in place, with the support of many sensitive personalities. the environmental cause. À Originally, the journalist Hugo Cléagrave; asked the head of state Emmanuel Macron "to contact the Danish Prime Minister, Mette Frederiksen, to demand the immediate release  eacute;diate by Paul Watson". Quickly, several personalities like Pierre Niney, Nagui, Brigitte Bardot, Stéphane Bern, Shaka Ponk signedé this petition. "We must do everything to save Paul" alerts Brigitte Bardot in Le Parisien. "We are profoundly revolted that a man who dedicatedé his life &agrav; to protect endangered animals is now stopped. à the request of a Éstate which does not respect the law" declared for his part; Hugo Clément. Currently, the petition has more than 332,000 signatories.

Who is Paul Watson ?

Eco-activist, Paul Watson has dedicatedé his life &agrav; defense of the environment and ecosystems. Co-founder of Greenpeace, he created then Sea Shepered to carry out "more direct actions". Scuttling of boats, sabotage… The organization is known for its punchy actions, particularly for denouncing the destruction of marine fauna and overfishing. The 73-year-old man has made the defense of whales in South Antarctica his hobby horse. He has already led&eac; dozens of risky campaigns to harass and prevent ships from chasing ribs.