Gérard Royal
Encyclopedia
Gérard Royal is a former agent of the French
intelligence agency
Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure
(DGSE-"General Directorate of External Security"), who is accused of being one of those responsible for the bombing of the Greenpeace
ship Rainbow Warrior
. A long serving officer, who retired from the French Army
with the rank of Colonel, Royal works in an "economic intelligence business". He is the brother of former French presidential candidate
Ségolène Royal
.
In 1985 Royal was a member of the DGSE implicated in the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior
. Since 1995 it had been public knowledge that Royal was one of the team of saboteurs. In September 2006, as his sister Ségolène became a candidate for the presidency, Gérard returned to media attention when his brother Antoine told Le Parisien
that he had admitted to being the man who planted the bombs which killed Fernando Pereira
.
Le Parisien
quoted Antoine as saying "...he was called upon in 1985 to go to New Zealand
, to Auckland
Harbour, to sabotage the Rainbow Warrior. Later, he told me that it was him who planted the bomb on the Greenpeace
ship". However some French media, citing sources within the DGSE, have stated that Royal was merely the pilot of the inflatable boat carrying the bombers. Royal has refused to confirm or deny that he planted the bombs, but made a statement complaining of "harassment by the media".
Pereira's daughter and Greenpeace
both called for the New Zealand government to demand the extradition
of Royal to stand trial for the murder. But the government made it clear that they considered the case as closed.
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
intelligence agency
Intelligence agency
An intelligence agency is a governmental agency that is devoted to information gathering for purposes of national security and defence. Means of information gathering may include espionage, communication interception, cryptanalysis, cooperation with other institutions, and evaluation of public...
Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure
Direction générale de la sécurité extérieure
The General Directorate for External Security is France's external intelligence agency. Operating under the direction of the French ministry of defence, the agency works alongside the DCRI in providing intelligence and national security, notably by performing paramilitary and counterintelligence...
(DGSE-"General Directorate of External Security"), who is accused of being one of those responsible for the bombing of the Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
ship Rainbow Warrior
Rainbow Warrior (1978)
The Rainbow Warrior was a former UK Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food trawler later purchased by the environmental organisation Greenpeace...
. A long serving officer, who retired from the French Army
French Army
The French Army, officially the Armée de Terre , is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces.As of 2010, the army employs 123,100 regulars, 18,350 part-time reservists and 7,700 Legionnaires. All soldiers are professionals, following the suspension of conscription, voted in...
with the rank of Colonel, Royal works in an "economic intelligence business". He is the brother of former French presidential candidate
French presidential election, 2007
The 2007 French presidential election, the ninth of the Fifth French Republic was held to elect the successor to Jacques Chirac as president of France for a five-year term.The winner, decided on 5 and 6 May 2007, was Nicolas Sarkozy...
Ségolène Royal
Ségolène Royal
Marie-Ségolène Royal , known as Ségolène Royal, is a French politician. She is the president of the Poitou-Charentes Regional Council, a former member of the National Assembly, a former government minister, and a prominent member of the French Socialist Party...
.
In 1985 Royal was a member of the DGSE implicated in the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior
Sinking of the Rainbow Warrior
The sinking of the Rainbow Warrior, codenamed Opération Satanique, was an operation by the "action" branch of the French foreign intelligence services, the Direction Générale de la Sécurité Extérieure , carried out on July 10, 1985...
. Since 1995 it had been public knowledge that Royal was one of the team of saboteurs. In September 2006, as his sister Ségolène became a candidate for the presidency, Gérard returned to media attention when his brother Antoine told Le Parisien
Le Parisien
Le Parisien is a French daily newspaper covering both international and national news, and local news of Paris and its suburbs. It was established as Le Parisien libéré by Émilien Amaury in 1944, and the name was changed to the current one in 1986...
that he had admitted to being the man who planted the bombs which killed Fernando Pereira
Fernando Pereira
Fernando Pereira was a freelance Dutch photographer, of Portuguese origin, who drowned when French intelligence used two underwater mines to sink the ship Rainbow Warrior, owned by the environmental organisation Greenpeace on July 10, 1985 .The bombing of the boat had been designed to make the ship...
.
Le Parisien
Le Parisien
Le Parisien is a French daily newspaper covering both international and national news, and local news of Paris and its suburbs. It was established as Le Parisien libéré by Émilien Amaury in 1944, and the name was changed to the current one in 1986...
quoted Antoine as saying "...he was called upon in 1985 to go to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, to Auckland
Auckland
The Auckland metropolitan area , in the North Island of New Zealand, is the largest and most populous urban area in the country with residents, percent of the country's population. Auckland also has the largest Polynesian population of any city in the world...
Harbour, to sabotage the Rainbow Warrior. Later, he told me that it was him who planted the bomb on the Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
ship". However some French media, citing sources within the DGSE, have stated that Royal was merely the pilot of the inflatable boat carrying the bombers. Royal has refused to confirm or deny that he planted the bombs, but made a statement complaining of "harassment by the media".
Pereira's daughter and Greenpeace
Greenpeace
Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, The Netherlands...
both called for the New Zealand government to demand the extradition
Extradition
Extradition is the official process whereby one nation or state surrenders a suspected or convicted criminal to another nation or state. Between nation states, extradition is regulated by treaties...
of Royal to stand trial for the murder. But the government made it clear that they considered the case as closed.
External links
- L'Express newspaper -- short biography (in French)
- Scoop independent news -- analysis
- New Zealand Herald -- Royal's connection
- Sydney Morning Herald -- New Zealand government will not seek Royal's extradition
- ABC's The World Today -- reaction to the news
- The FirstPost -- analysis -- Gérard's past may help Ségolène Presidential bid
- New Zealand Herald -- Pereira's daughter calls for Royal's prosecution