Japan's annual dolphin slaughter begins at Taiji cove
Bad weather could delay killing on first day of
controversial six-month dolphin hunting season, official says
theguardian.com,
Monday 1 September 2014 / http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/sep/01/japans-annual-dolphin-slaughter-begins-at-taiji-cove
The controversial six-month dolphin hunting season began on
Monday in the infamous town of Taiji, but bad weather would delay any killing,
a local official told AFP.
The annual catch, in which people from the southwestern town
corral hundreds of dolphins into a secluded bay and butcher them, was thrust
into the global spotlight in 2009 when it became the subject of the
Oscar-winning documentary The Cove.
“The dolphin hunting season started today and will last
until the end of February,” said an official of the Taiji fisheries
association, adding the season for hunting pilot whales, which also begins
today, will last until April.
But bad weather on Monday meant there would be no hunting on
the day, he said.
Environmental campaigners are already in situ to watch the
hunt, the official said.
Last season, activists from international environmental
group Sea Shepherd, who call themselves “Cove Guardians”, streamed live footage
of the dolphin capture.
Earlier this year, the slaughter sparked renewed global
criticism after US ambassador to Japan Caroline Kennedy tweeted her concern at
the “inhumaneness” of the hunt.
Defenders say it is a tradition and point out that the
animals it targets are not endangered, a position echoed by the Japanese
government.
They say Western objections are hypocritical and ignore the
vastly larger number of cows, pigs and sheep butchered to satisfy demand
elsewhere.
But critics of the practice say there is insufficient demand
for the animals’ meat, which in any case contains dangerous levels of mercury.
They say the hunt is only profitable because of the high
prices live dolphins can fetch when sold to aquariums and dolphin shows.
On Sunday around 30 people marched in Tokyo to protest the
hunt, which they say sullies Japan’s reputation abroad.
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