- In February 2018, 23 Greenpeace activists took part in a protest against the boat Saudi Bahri Tabuk, located in Istanbul. The activists denounced that they intended to carry 200 tons of weapons, nine of which managed to hang themselves from the ties of the boat in which they were travelling. Now, the Prosecutor's Office is calling for three years and six months in jail for four activists.
In the protest, it was denounced that the weapons were intended to be used in the Yemen war and that "Spanish brand weapons were intended to murder citizens". The Prosecutor's Office has requested the four German activists to be sentenced to prison for "attack on authority" and "qualified damage". In addition, the Civil Guard requires Greenpeace to confiscate the material used in the protest and compensation of EUR 4,000 for the damage suffered by the Civil Guard patrol.
This NGO has rejected the accusations, as its actions fall within the “framework of non-violence”. They wanted to add that the safety of entrepreneurs always prevails, so the “confrontation” with the Civil Guard boats does not fall within their objectives.
Complicit in silence
The organization has denounced that the sale of arms is a fact that occurs in secret, as a result of the Official Secrets Act of Franco. The agents who have sought explanations have not received any reply, as the Secretary-General of Podemos in Motril (Granada, Spanish State) has denounced.
Greenpeace's Head of Democracy and Human Rights, Javier Raboso, has stated in statements to the public that the arms trade "needs silence". -The more you speak, the more nasty it will be. That’s why messengers are killed and that’s why protests are effective,” he added.