FUROR OVER GREENPEACE CASE CONTINUES IN FRANCE

• Document Type: CREST
• Collection: General CIA Records
• Document Number (FOIA) /ESDN (CREST): CIA-RDP90-00965R000100490011-9
• Release Decision: RIPPUB
• Original Classification: K
• Document Page Count: 1
• Document Creation Date: December 22, 2016
• Document Release Date: December 21, 2011
• Sequence Number: 11
• Publication Date: September 22, 1985
• Content Type: OPEN SOURCE

Si Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/21: CIA-RDP90-00965R000100490011-9
X NEW YORK TIMES
ARTICLE APPUR
ON PAGE_
22 September 1985
Furor, Over Green peace Case Continues in France
-- that they were not informed."
The reaction of rightist
By RICHARD BERNSTEIN cased that they would continue make
Special to The New York Times an issue of purported Government mis-
PARIS, Sept. 21 - Opposition politi- handling of the affair, particularly with
mans called on President Francois Mit- the approach of legislative elections
tprrand today to explain the Govern- scheduled for March.
n'tent's actions in a political crisis that 'Incompetence and Ineebeeence'
tM to the resignation of Defense Minis- ,.
,pr Charles Hernu. Lies and discord were. added to in-
Mr. Hernu stepped down on Friday competence and incoherence,' said
and the head of the French intelligence Andre Rossinot, head of the Radical
agency was dismissed as the Govern- Party, another opposition group.
ment moved to end the furor over the Mr. Hernu, a close friend of Mr. Mit-
in New Zealand of the Rainbow terrand, resigned as Defense Minister
inkin
i
;
g
,i'arrior, an antinuclear protest ship. after Government denials of respons
? Prime Minister constrained to cut his
the vessel was the flagship of the envi- bility in the sinking of the Rainbow losses, with both t them 'nnmentalist group Greenpeace. Warrior crumbled in the face of French known the powerlessness em Minis-of the
making politicians and press cowmen- ter of Defense to establish, or to get at,
11
t th ration
n
e
b
tators predicted further political prob-
lems for Mr. Mitterrand, asserting that
his standing at home and abroad had
been affected by the affair.
"The fact of having designated a
scapegoat appears to be one more
maneuver to try to delay the establish-
ment of the truth and to disguise the
real responsible parties," said Jean
Lecanuet, president of the center-right
Union for French Democracy, alluding
to Mr Hernu's resignation.
Contending that Mr. Mitterrand and
Prime Minister Laurent Fabius knew
in advance of the plan to sink the
Greenpeace ship, Mr. Lecanuet went
on, "It is impossible for them to evade
their responsibility, and it is unlikely
o
press disclosures a u
I. the truth.
The French intelligence chief, Adm. Even officials of the governing So-
Pierre Lacoste. was smtssed after fie cialist Party said the Government had
refused to answer questions from r.
a._gen care out the
One crew member. a Portuguese
when the
photographer, was killed w
W
"A Mess." Le Monde said, "it is hard
to see now Mr. Mitterrand can act with
his former authority on the important
questions that have been held in abey-
ance."
The Government's "strange behav-
ior," the editorial said, "will harm the
image enjoyed by France in the eyes of
diverse foreign publics."
The "surgical operation," the au-
thoritative daily said in an accompany-
ing article, "gives substance to the
reacted slowly to press reports of n
cover-up by some officials.
Lionel Jospin, the party leader, said
arrior was sunk in Auck- I Friday night that "obstacles" to the
Rainbow
truth should have been removed "more
land Harbor on July 10, shortly before, quickly, more forcefully, and by us."
it was to lead a protest flotilla against
French nuclear weapons testing in the
South Pacific.
Blow to Authority Is Seen
Mr. Hernu's resignation and Admiral
Lacoste's dismissal were designed in
part to end the political storm sur-
rounding the Greenpeace affair. But
the immediate reaction to the moves
indicated the furor had not ended.
In a front-page editorial today, titled
Declassified in Part - Sanitized Copy Approved for Release 2011/12/21 : CIA-RDP90-00965R000100490011-9