Witness

The Witness is the newest and greenest vessel in the Greenpeace fleet. Originally the South African vessel known as Pelagic Australis, it underwent a transformation to become a Greenpeace ship in 2021.

SY Witness in the Argentine sea. © Osvaldo Tesoro / Greenpeace
The Greenpeace ship SY Witness sails away from the Netherlands for her maiden voyage and first mission.

This makeover included eco-friendly upgrades like solar panels and wind turbines, aligning with Greenpeace’s ethos of sustainability. Despite being the smallest in our fleet at 22.5 metres, the Witness boasts a lifting keel and rudder, allowing it to navigate shallow waters inaccessible to larger vessels.

In early 2022, the Witness embarked on its inaugural campaign, partnering with the Whale Conservation Institute to patrol the Argentine Sea. Here, the oil industry planned seismic explorations, posing a grave threat to the Southern Right Whale, a vital part of Argentine biodiversity.

Seismic exploration poses severe risks to whales, potentially causing harm and even deafness. As whales rely on sound for navigation, a deaf whale faces perilous consequences. This disregard for the environment and its inhabitants is precisely the challenge the Witness, and Greenpeace as a whole, was designed to confront.

The Witness stands ready to bear witness to such injustices, ensuring that the voices of our planet’s most vulnerable are heard and heeded.

The Pelagic Australis is transformed into SY Witness

During the transfer, the crew received a traditional ceremony in Cape Town harbour to wish the sailing vessel and crew the best of luck. The crew sailed from Cape Town, via the Azores, to Amsterdam in 6 weeks.

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The Greek oil company HELPE has been conducting seismic testing over the past weeks in the Ionian Sea in Greece. After conducting seismic testing without any public announcement for 3 weeks in Kyparissiakos Bay, a very sensitive ecosystem and a protected area, the company has moved on to do testing on another block in the Ionian Sea further north west of Corfu, again not informing anyone about their plans. They have assured us that they are taking all the necessary protection measures, but why do they act with such secrecy and lack of transparency? We are here to bear witness: we peacefully protest against the seismic testing in an area which is extremely important for marine species such as Caretta turtles, sperm whales and many more. We peacefully protest against the lack of transparency and we will record any possible negative effects of the testing to the ecosystem. This part of the Ionian Sea is one of the most important habitats for marine mammals in the Mediterranean and we cannot allow such an important area for biodiversity to become endangered by obsolete fossil fuel seismic & extractive activities like the ones HELPE has in the pipeline. It’s not the first time we protest against HELPE’s destructive activities and greenwashing practices. They have not listened. Instead, they have used greenwashing in order to build an “environmentally friendly” profile and enjoy social license for their actions. The banner on the Rainbow Warrior's railing reads "HELPE, stop this crime" and the hand banners in Greek read "Fossil gas = climate chaos" and "Our seas demand protection".

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