Descendents of mutineers made famous by the "Mutiny on the Bounty" movie will appeal their convictions for rape on the island of Pitcairn. Six men were convicted of rape, indecent assault and sexual assault. Sentences ranged from house detention to six years behind bars, TV New Zealand reported Friday. All six men were allowed to remain free on bail while they appeal to Britain's Privy Council next year. Their lawyers deny Britain's right to prosecute them, arguing British sovereignty ended when the mutineers sank the Bounty off the island in 1790. They also point out that Britain never promulgated or enforced the under-age sex law under which the men were convicted. Their victims, now adults who testified via video from New Zealand, said during the four-week trials they were treated as "sex things" as girls and raped at will under banyan trees or in garden sheds on Pitcairn. The guilty men responded underage sex had been an island tradition since the mutineers arrived with their Tahitian women in 1790. © Copyright 2004 by United Press International

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