Around the World: New Zealand

Japan may charge protester

An anti-whaling activist from New Zealand was in custody on a Japanese vessel and will likely be taken to Japan to face charges after secretly boarding the ship as part of a protest off Australia's coast, officials said yesterday.

Diplomats in New Zealand and Tokyo have been meeting to discuss what to do with Peter Bethune, who jumped aboard the Shonan Maru 2 from a Jet Ski on Monday with the stated goal of making a citizen's arrest of the ship's captain, while handing over a $3 million bill for the destruction of his protest ship last month.