Greenpeace will appear in court in Miami on Monday in what is believed to be the first criminal prosecution in the United States of a campaign group for the activities of its members.
The case has been attacked by the former vice-president Al Gore and many civil rights groups, who claim it is being used by the attorney general, John Ashcroft, to stifle dissent.
It arises out of a Greenpeace action off the Florida coast in April 2002. Two members boarded a vessel believed to be illegally carrying mahogany from Brazil to the US and hoisted a banner saying, "President Bush, Stop Illegal Logging". Hilary Hoster and Scott Paul were arrested and held briefly. They pleaded guilty to misdemeanours and received a sentence of time served. Normally, that would have been the end of the matter. Greenpeace is accustomed to its members being briefly jailed or fined over their activities.
However, after a 15 month delay, the government announced it was prosecuting the organisation under an obscure 1872 law that forbids "sailor-mongering" or boarding ships to talk to the crew. It was introduced to prevent staff from brothels and bars in ports luring sailors to their premises and interfering with the smooth running of a ship.
http://www.mg.co.za/Content/l3.asp?ao=66284 Greenpeace is the first group I've ever joined. I saved my allowance money and sent in $5 when I was about 10 years old.
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