Day 245 - 07 May 96 - Page 59


     
     1   Q.   You were not even telling them that they had got the other
     2        parts of the leaflet wrong?
     3        A.  Well, I do not know what we said in conversation.  That
     4        was the issue which was involving the statement itself.  I
     5        am sorry, I do not remember what the entire conversation
     6        was of nine years ago, whether it came up or not, whether
     7        we compromised on an issue or not, I do not know.
     8
     9   Q.   But you have seen the correspondence there.  You have seen
    10        the things that Veggies were asked to apologise about.  Do
    11        you not think that the fact that you did not ask Veggies to
    12        apologise over the other things, or at least inform them
    13        that you considered them to be incorrect, would lead to the
    14        impression that you were quite happy with what was written
    15        there?
    16        A.  I do not know that they were not discussed.
    17
    18   Q.   They are not in the correspondence.  I am talking about
    19        what you conveyed to Veggies, not what you discussed
    20        amongst yourselves?
    21        A.  I accept that they were not in the correspondence.
    22        That does not tell me they were not discussed at some point
    23        in time whatsoever.  I have no way of knowing that now.
    24
    25   Q.   You mean discussed with Veggies?
    26        A.  With them or internally or both.
    27
    28   Q.   Right.  They might have been discussed internally but there
    29        is no evidence that they were discussed with Veggies.
    30        Despite the fact that the Peace News article actually
    31        refers to the other issues and says that you have not taken
    32        any action over them, and that you have not taken any
    33        action against London Greenpeace, you did not then consider
    34        that it was important to immediately notify Veggies that
    35        you considered the whole leaflet to be incorrect?
    36        A.  Well, as I said, I do not remember the whole
    37        discussions of 1987, but I cannot really comment beyond
    38        that.  We may have talked about it.  We may have decided
    39        not to pursue it.  I do not recall.
    40
    41   Q.   The reality is, is it not, that when you came to sue myself
    42        and Mr. Morris and the other 3 Defendants, you just slapped
    43        in every single criticism that was in the leaflet in the
    44        hope that we would back down and apologise like other
    45        people have been forced to do so, and then that would be
    46        the end of it because there would be no strand of criticism
    47        left which could be aired?
    48        A.  Ms. Steel, I do not take litigation lightly.  I went
    49        into it off the back of statements made in a leaflet here
    50        I find to be offensive and defamatory.  I cannot explain 
    51        here and now why the Veggies retraction did not talk about 
    52        some of the other issues, I do not know.  The fact remains 
    53        that in your leaflet the statements are there and we chose
    54        to act on them.
    55
    56   Q.   Effectively, you gave the green light to Veggies to reprint
    57        the fact sheet with minor changes in only two places in the
    58        rainforest and the torture and murder of animals, is that
    59        not right?
    60        A.  No.  I did not give a green light to anybody.  Those

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