Greenpeace activists acquitted in Spanish port protest case

A court in Valencia has acquitted eleven Greenpeace activists of public disorder charges stemming from a 2021 protest at the Port of Sagunto. The activists had blocked the entrance of the American vessel Merchant, which was carrying 138,000 cubic meters of liquefied natural gas, for approximately twelve hours to protest fossil fuel dependency.

The magistrate ruled that the protest did not involve “acts of violence or intimidation sufficient to seriously alter public peace in the terms required by the criminal type.” Notably, Civil Guard officers testifying for the prosecution described the protest as peaceful, despite noting that the dock was blocked and certain official requirements were not met.

The prosecution had initially sought five years of prison for each activist, later reducing the request to two and a half years due to a legal error regarding the application of the Penal Code. Greenpeace had previously paid 160,000 euros in sanctions related to the incident. The ruling is not yet final and may be appealed.