Japan ‘Cove’ town to meet activists over dolphin hunt
The Japanese dolphin-hunting town of Taiji and foreign animal rights activists plan to hold their first meeting to discuss the town’s controversial culls as early next month, a town official said Thursday.
Every year fishermen in Taiji herd about 2,000 dolphins into a secluded bay, select several dozen for sale to aquariums and marine parks and harpoon the rest for meat, a practice long deplored by animal rights activists.
Taiji Mayor Kazutaka Sangen, local officials and fishermen are in talks with members from the environmental activist group Sea Shepherd on plans to hold the first meeting on November 2, a town official said.
“The schedule has not been finalised yet, but it’s certain that we will hold the meeting at some point,” the official said.
An environmental activist protests in front of the Japanese embassy in Berlin, October 14, 2010, against the annual slaughter of dolphins in Taiji, Japan. Every year, fishermen in Taiji herd about 2,000 dolphins into a shallow bay, select several dozen for sale to aquariums and marine parks and harpoon the rest for meat. AFP
Taiji has been in the global spotlight since the Oscar-winning US eco-documentary “The Cove”, in which the production team used hidden and underwater cameras to show the annual dolphin hunts.
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Category: Society
