In a motion filed today, Greenpeace contended that the Justice
Department is engaged in improper selective prosecution — singling
out Greenpeace because the organization has effectively opposed
Bush administration policies. The Justice Department has indicted
Greenpeace under an obscure 19th century law prohibiting the
boarding of ships.
The case stems from an April 2002 protest in which two
Greenpeace activists climbed onto a commercial ship off the coast
of Florida and held a banner that said, “President Bush, Stop
Illegal Logging.” The ship was carrying mahogany wood illegally
exported from Brazil’s Amazon rainforest. While the individuals
involved in the protest settled charges against them last year, the
Justice Department filed criminal charges against the entire
organization in July 2003. A trial is presently set for later this
month.
“This prosecution is unprecedented in American history,” said
John Passacantando, executive director of Greenpeace in the United
States. “Never before has our government criminally prosecuted an
entire organization for the free speech activities of its
supporters. If this prosecution succeeds, then peaceful protest —
an essential American tradition from the Boston Tea Party through
the modern civil rights movement — may become yet another casualty
of Attorney General Ashcroft’s attack on civil liberties.”
In addition to its motion regarding selective prosecution,
Greenpeace has also filed motions: (1) to dismiss the indictment;
(2) to hold a jury trial if the case is not dismissed; and (3) to
compel the federal government to turn over evidence supporting
Greenpeace’s claim that the ship was carrying mahogany. The
government has denied the latter claim, but Greenpeace has solid
evidence to support it.
Greenpeace’s protest stemmed from the organization’s ongoing
work to protect the Brazilian Amazon and other ancient forests.
Large criminal enterprises, using bribery, extortion, slavery and
murder, continue to ravage the Amazon and export their contraband,
but joint efforts by Greenpeace and Brazilian authorities have
helped slow unlawful trade in the Amazon. Greenpeace protest
activities around the world have helped convince governments to
provide greater protection for mahogany.
Greenpeace is charged under an 18th-century law designed to
prevent unscrupulous boarding house proprietors from luring
arriving sailors to their establishments.
“Instead of indicting Greenpeace for blowing the whistle on
illegal smuggling, our government should be intercepting the
contraband and prosecuting the smugglers,” Passacantando said. “The
law under which we are being charged is so archaic that we can only
conclude that the Justice Department dredged it up to shut us
down.”
