By The Sea Shepherd activist Peter Bethune who was arrested by Japanese authorities has finally received his sentence:
A Tokyo court on Wednesday convicted a New Zealand activist of assault and obstructing Japanese whaling ships in the Antarctic Ocean, and sentenced him to a suspended prison term.
Peter Bethune was also found guilty on three other charges: trespassing, vandalism and possession of a knife. He had pleaded guilty to all but the assault charge when his trial started in late May.
The court sentenced Bethune to two years in prison, with the sentence suspended for five years – meaning he will not be jailed.
The assault conviction was for throwing bottles of rancid butter at the whalers aboard their ship, including one that broke and gave several Japanese crew members chemical burns.
Bethune, 45, climbed onto the Shonan Maru 2 in February from a Jet Ski to confront its captain over the sinking of a protest vessel the previous month. He slashed a protective net with a knife, which the court said he possessed illegally, to enter the ship.
The former activist for Sea Shepherd, a U.S.-based conservation group, was held on board the ship and arrested when it returned to Japan in March. [Stars & Stripes]
Read the rest at the link, but Bethune made a tearful closing statement apologizing for what he had done and promised not to return to such activities. I think the sentence is fair because the Japanese made their point, got him to apologize, and he spent enough time in jail to possibly act as a deterrent to other people thinking of boarding the Japanese ships.
It is interesting to read about all of this though because if you watch Whale Wars on Animal Planet Bethune is the one of the most gung-ho anti-whaling protesters on the show and now it seems like the Japanese broke him down, Sea Shepherd abandoned him by expelling him from the group, and he has right wing ultra-nationalists chanting to give him the death penalty. It is enough to almost make me feel bad for him.
8:16 pm on July 7th, 2010 1
Or he might just be a good actor. "Playing" the part of a "remorseful" criminal goes a long way in Asian courts. Much further than it does in American courts.
9:04 pm on July 7th, 2010 2
Seems the Japanese are much more humane than their detractors. Had the tables been turned, I doubt Mr. Bethune would have been so merciful. Pirate, terrorist scumbag.
2:11 am on July 8th, 2010 3
I am confused by the picture included in the article. He must of aged considerably for that to be Pete Bethune:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_James_Bethune
8:06 am on July 8th, 2010 4
I almost always agree with your views, except on this subject. The Japanese (and Koreans) have continuously been stubborn about this issue. Whaling is against international law. But, just like the North Koreans, the Japanese ignore that law. And anyone who is an activist against that attitude is a pirate? Maybe we should change U.S. history books to brand our forefathers as traitors and criminals?
Just a thought.
8:11 am on July 8th, 2010 5
…anyone who is an activist against that attitude is a pirate?
No, activism is fine and encouraged. Piracy (boarding vessels) and terrorism (attacking ships and crews i.e. endangering HUMAN life) are the problem. How hard is that to grasp?
10:09 am on July 8th, 2010 6
#3,
Yes, you're right. It's not Peter Bethune.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sunday-star-times/news/lat…
10:11 am on July 8th, 2010 7
Makes you wonder why they picked that picture.
12:28 am on July 11th, 2010 8
#5,
The ship what rammed the Ady Gil was apparently neither a research vessel nor a whaler, but a ship whose purpose was to tail Sea Shepherd.
#1,
Sea Shepherd claims they distanced themselves from Bethune in order to ensure he wouldn't spend any time in jail. They just didn't tell him so he'd really look pissed off.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/3906805/Pete-Beth…
Either way, Japan wouldn't even be whaling if it didn't bribe it's way into it.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/06/14/292…
3:06 pm on July 19th, 2010 9
Wow… the Japanese boat slices the Ady Gil in half, almost killing the whole crew. In any sane court system they would be tried for attempted murder, instead they lie to say that it was the other boat's fault. They escape due to corruption and then try the activist that they attempted to murder for boarding their boat. Sounds about right considering the corrupt, distorted views of the Japanese people (within this topic). And then to call him a "Pirate, terrorist scumbag." is as moronic as it gets.
Just disgusting.
3:58 pm on July 19th, 2010 10
Haven't we been over all this before?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Regula…
18. Responsibilities between vessels
Except in narrow channels, traffic separation schemes, and when overtaking (i.e. rules 9, 10, and 13)
* A power-driven vessel must give way to:
o a vessel not under command;
o a vessel restricted in her ability to maneuver;
o a vessel engaged in fishing;
o a sailing vessel.
The Ady Gil was capable, could have and should have got out of the way to avoid the collision but this was done on purpose for dramatic effect. Not to mention the Ady Gil was attempting to foul the propellers of the Japanese ship. The Ady Gil had repeatedly violated maritime law by not only "directing its course toward another vessel", but also doing so while dragging a device with the express purpose of doing harm to that other vessel.
Why not call them pirates? Especially when they are flying a Jolly Roger!
4:11 pm on July 19th, 2010 11
Arrrgh!
4:15 pm on July 19th, 2010 12
#11 Aye Matey!
4:26 pm on July 19th, 2010 13
The Ady Gil was scuttled.
It was a single-purpose ship built for setting records… not for durability.
It was intentionally destroyed… and, likely, intentionally sunk… as, even with the damage it sustained, its design should have kept it positively buoyant.
It was all a scam to bring in donations and rating, maybe collect some insurance money and get rid of a liability that, due to environmental regulations, may have cost more to scrap than it cost to build.
2:32 pm on August 27th, 2010 14
Right…so we're the sociopaths that don't respect life….hmmm doesn't sound right to me.
The sea shepherds never try to kill Japanese Whalers (no matter what they may deserve) and they absolutely ran into the Ady Gil on purpose, it's engine failed, that's attempted murder!! Believe whatever you want, we have it all on tape. Question: How do you explain The Cove? Other than evil sociopaths with no morals.
3:11 pm on August 27th, 2010 15
Ally, maybe people will have more sympathy when you stop throwing bottles of acid and blinding them with lasers. Irony lost on you? Strange that.
4:15 am on August 29th, 2010 16
Haha they have a tape of the Japanese shooting an unknown liquid at the Sea Shepherds and then screaming and covering their eyes when the wind blew it back in their faces. Next day they accuse the Sea Shepherds of blinding them with acid. Lol it's all on tape! They're such liars. The only acid they throw is rotten butter. What Lasers? And no the Ady Gil was not capable the engine failed. Lastly the real victims are the whales, they are the only ones I'm worried about. It breaks my heart, they are completely innocent.
4:34 am on August 29th, 2010 17
What's up with the "engine failed" thing? That's new.
I'd be curious to hear how that explanation relates to the white water behind the Ady Gil in the video.
5:11 am on August 29th, 2010 18
Obviously I wasn't there, I'm guessing neither were you, so I can't tell you exactly what happened. What I do know is that Animal Planet would not have risked lives for a rating jump, and chopping a boat with 6 people on it in half is illegal and immoral, always. I don't care what you think of them. I really don't want to get into a he said she said argument with anyone. It's a waste of time. Could someone just tell me one benefit of hunting whales? It poisons citizens, and could potentially exterminate species. Its gruesome, unethical, and frankly I expect more from these countries that I've always respected.
7:55 am on June 17th, 2011 19
i think that he should have minor charges i mean after all he is trying to stop the whalers yes he did hurt some one with a bottle of butaric acid. i was watching the show when the crash happened and i almost cried because of the fact that he spent sooo much money on that boat and beat a world record with it.
6:05 pm on June 21st, 2011 20
Anti-whaling is filled with glamor
as they give the whalers the hammer.
But, while good at attacking,
something is lacking,
with both punctuation and grammar.