SYDNEY, Australia — Many Aussies would be prepared to slap on a bumper sticker or even a T-shirt to support the fight against whaling. But Japanese Greenpeace activist Toru Suzuki, who held a public talk at the Sydney Mechanics School of Art last week, is facing as much as 10 years in prison for his contribution to the cause. In April last year, Mr Suzuki and fellow activist Junichi Sato, known as the Tokyo Two, exposed an scandal when they discovered whale meat was being smuggled and sold for personal gain by crew members of the country's public-funded whaling fleet. Intercepting one of about 40 packages labelled "cardboard" and addressed to crew members, the two men said they opened the box to find 25kg of whale bacon, valued at about $5000. "Originally our intention was to document the contents of the box and put it back but we were really shocked by what we saw and felt a strong responsibility to show this to the world," Mr Suzuki said. They delivered the box to the Tokyo District Prosecutor as evidence of corruption. An investigation was initiated but suddenly dropped on the same day that 40 police officers raided the Greenpeace office in Tokyo and arrested the Tokyo Two. Held for 26 days and questioned for up to 10 hours a day, they were eventually charged with theft and trespass. "This case is very much politically motivated from the beginning, so we're not optimistic about the end result," he said. "We need Australia to send an observer to our trial to stop Japan from mucking around. Australia can't get involved with a local domestic issue but this is an international human rights issue." | | In many countries, anti-whaling activist Toru Suzuki is considered a hero, but in Japan, he faces 10 years in prison for exposing corruption. Despite his lack of optimism about the trial, Mr Suzuki said he was proud of his efforts and was remaining positive. Since the scandal, a flagship whale meat restaurant in Tokyo has closed, a local whaling festival has ceased and scores of whaling crew members have left in search of other work, he said. by Rob Bates |
