Vindicating ‘Arctic 30’, Court Orders Russia to Pay for Greenpeace Arrests
(COMMON DREAMS) Nadia Prupis — Russia must compensate the Netherlands for its seizure of a Greenpeace ship two years ago, which led to the arrest of 30 international environmental activists, a court in the Hague ruled on Monday.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruled that Russia’s September 2013 seizure of the Arctic Sunrise and the jailing of those on board was unlawful, and said the Netherlands “is entitled to compensation with interest for material damage” to the ship and the crew, who became known as the Arctic 30.
Activists had scaled an offshore oil rig owned by Russian energy companyGazprom in a protest against Arctic drilling. In response, Russian authorities intercepted Greenpeace’s vessel in international waters and took the crew into custody at gunpoint, sparking international outcry over what many saw as excessive and hostile treatment of the peaceful demonstrators and journalists.
Russia returned the ship to the Netherlands last year, but not before detaining the activists for months.