Copenhagen rejected Japan’s extradition request for the founder of the NGO Sea Shepherd on Tuesday, December 17, citing a technical reason that allowed Tokyo to save face.
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On December 17, 2024, the defense of whales won, and Europe may have won a little too. By refusing to extradite the famous whale protector Paul Watson to Japan, the Danish government emerged from the diplomatic quagmire it had been mired in for nearly five months. As Denmark is set to take over the rotating presidency of the European Union in July 2025, Copenhagen « saves the honor of Europe, » exclaimed William Bourdon, one of Mr. Watson’s lawyers. Had the extradition been accepted, the defense had warned that it would appeal to the Danish Supreme Court and also the European Court of Human Rights in an emergency procedure.
The founder of the NGO Sea Shepherd, released early in the morning, immediately filed a defamation lawsuit with the Paris Judicial Court against far-right German MEP Siegbert Droese (Alternative for Germany), who had called him an « eco-terrorist » during a debate in the European Parliament in September. Upon his release from prison, the elderly marine activist expressed his joy at being able to « go home for Christmas » in a video posted on social media by the Captain Paul Watson Foundation.
Source: Le Monde
