A fierce opponent of whaling detained in Greenland, environmental activist Paul Watson requested political asylum in France from Emmanuel Macron. He hopes to avoid being extradited to Japan, which is pursuing him for acts dating back 14 years. Here are the main issues surrounding this case.
– What is Paul Watson accused of?
The 73-year-old American-Canadian, founder of Sea Shepherd and the foundation that bears his name, was arrested on July 21, en route with his ship, the John Paul DeJoria, to intercept a Japanese whaling factory ship.
Japanese authorities accuse him of being co-responsible for damage and injuries during two incidents in the Antarctic Ocean in 2010.
Facts for which a former traveling companion of Watson, New Zealander Peter Bethune, was sentenced in July 2010 to two years in prison after pleading guilty.
More precisely, according to Sea Shepherd France and its lawyers, Paul Watson is being prosecuted for injuries which according to the prosecution were inflicted on February 11, 2010 to a sailor from the boat Shonan Maru 2 by a powerful stink ball containing butyric acid, found for example in rancid butter.
He is also being prosecuted, according to the same sources, regarding the collision four days later of the whaler Shonan Maru 2, aboard which Peter Bethune had boarded to present the invoice for his boat, the Ady Gil, a black trimaran to futuristic design.
It had been seriously damaged a month earlier at sea, on January 6, 2010, during a resounding collision, after being violently hit by the Shonan Maru 2.
On February 15, 2010, arriving on a jet-ski, Peter Bethune boarded the ship after cutting an anti-intrusion net with a knife. A “destruction of property” in connection with which Paul Watson is now being prosecuted, according to his lawyers.
According to his supporters, Paul Watson is also being prosecuted for “obstruction of business”without specifying dates.
– What is his defense?
The lawyers of the environmental activist, who is said to have sabotaged and sunk numerous commercial fishing vessels, are deploying a wide range of arguments, ranging from non-respect of his fundamental rights to elements coming from the analysis of images of the incidents.
Questioning the Japanese penal system, they point out in particular that Peter Bethune, “crushed” by months of pre-trial detention, retracted his statements implicating Paul Watson.
They cite images showing members of the Shonan Maru 2 crew who appear to be hit by their own tear gas shots due to the wind.
“It is very clear that the crew members were hit by their own tear gas”explained Wednesday during a press conference his Danish lawyer, Jonas Christoffersen.
According to him, the images make it possible to establish that this incident took place “about a minute and a half before the stink ball was thrown” on the Japanese ship.
During both incidents, Paul Watson was on another boat.
– What about the request for political asylum?
Sea Shepherd France claims to have sent Emmanuel Macron a handwritten letter from Paul Watson, dated October 4, in which he requests political asylum in France.
On Wednesday, one of Paul Watson’s counsel, French lawyer Jean Tamalet, considered that this request had a “highly symbolic, very strong, very powerful value”.
However, it should not “not be interpreted as a headlong flight in the face of ongoing legal adversity”, “from which we hope to exit through the front door”he continued.
As for France’s position, for the moment it is not “not decided”government spokesperson Maud Bregeon said on Thursday.
As early as July 23, the Elysée had indicated that Emmanuel Macron was following “the situation up close” and intervened “to the Danish authorities” to avoid his extradition to Japan.
Paul Watson’s lawyers hope for a decision from the Danish Ministry of Justice, on which Greenland depends for this extradition request, in the coming weeks. According to Sea Shepherd France, the technical part of the political asylum request has not yet been “primed”.
This faces a legal problem, noted Friday the French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot, because “in principle, an asylum request can only be made on the soil of the country in which this request is made”.
