Monaco’s Hôtel Métropole was packed to the rafters on the evening of Wednesday, October 8, as legendary ocean defender Paul Watson took the stage for an extraordinary evening organised by the Monaco Press Club. The Canadian activist — co-founder of Greenpeace and founder of Sea Shepherd — spoke candidly about his lifelong campaign to protect whales, his brushes with the law, and his uncompromising approach to keeping environmental causes in the headlines.
More than a hundred guests gathered to hear Watson recount how his mission began decades ago, during a campaign in the North Pacific to block Soviet whalers. He described the harrowing moment that changed his life: witnessing a whale sacrifice itself to save its pod after being struck by a harpoon. “She looked me in the eye,” he recalled, “and I saw that she understood what we were trying to do. She could have killed us, but she chose not to. She had pity for humanity.” That, he said, was the moment he swore to dedicate his life to defending whales from humans, and from our weapons of mass destruction.
Now 74, Watson has spent half a century on the front lines of marine conservation, and in and out of courtrooms. He reflected on the victories won along the way: the global decline of whaling nations from more than 20 to just three: Iceland, Norway, and Japan. Yet his crusade has come at a price. In 2024, he was arrested in Greenland on an international warrant issued by Japan over confrontations with whaling fleets. After five months in Danish custody, Copenhagen refused to extradite him, citing a lack of legal assurances from Tokyo. Interpol later dropped its red notice, but Japan continues to push for his handover.
Watson revealed that France had declined his application for political asylum, but that President Emmanuel Macron had personally assured him he could reside safely in France “for as long as he wishes”. The veteran campaigner also confirmed plans to travel to Brazil later this month, where the president has guaranteed him similar protection.
Known for his flair for attention, Watson offered a characteristically blunt assessment of what it takes to make the media care about the planet. “There are four things that guarantee coverage,” he said. “Sex, scandal, violence, and celebrities. Look at the news — there’s always at least one.” With wry humour, he admitted to using that formula himself: Brigitte Bardot with baby seals, Pamela Anderson lobbying Vladimir Putin to save belugas, and Bo Derek speaking out against wolf hunting in Canada. “If I’d invited the best biologist in the world, no one would have come,” he said. “But with Bo Derek, the cameras turned up.”
Despite the controversies, Watson’s message to Monaco was one of determination and defiance. “Impossible problems demand impossible solutions,” he declared, insisting that his methods have always been non-violent — “the work of a pirate for good.” His appearance left the Principality’s audience inspired, if not slightly awed, by a man who has made a lifetime of challenging the powers that be, all in defence of the ocean’s giants.
