Japanese Govt. Approves Dolphin Kill Quota Rise in Taiji

Thousands around the world joined in Japan Dolphin Day events on Sept. 25th

In recent months, we have been following a story in our eNews about the Japanese Government's refusal to acknowledge that dolphin meat is tainted with deadly mercury, a heavy metal poison that can cause permanent neurological damage and death. Despite warnings from medical authorities and elected leaders, the Japanese Government supports expanding the use of dolphin meat in the country's school lunch program, putting schoolchildren at grave risk. As reckless as this is, the latest news is that the government has actually endorsed an increase in the number of dolphins killed in the town of Taiji's annual drive fisheries, so that even more people will eat the marine mammals' toxic flesh.

Granted a green light from the governmental Fisheries Agency in Tokyo, Taiji's drive fisheries started on September 1st this year, a month earlier than usual, though they will continue as always through the end of March. Their official annual quota has also been increased by 88 animals, from 2,380 to 2,468 (throughout Japan, the drive fisheries slaughter more than 20,000 cetaceans every year). The Japan Times reports that at least 90 marine mammals have been killed so far, and five have been captured for sale to marine parks where they will spend the remainder of their lives as unwilling performers.

The heartless cruelty of the drive fisheries, along with the Japanese Government's endangerment of the public's health, are fueling the worldwide opposition to the annual dolphin slaughter taking place every year in Taiji and other Japanese coastal villages. The recent events reported above helped make this year's Japan Dolphin Day, held on Tuesday, September 25th, one of the most successful yet, with dozens of protests held in front of Japanese consulates in cities and countries around the world. As a member of the Save Japan Dolphins coalition, sponsor and coordinator of Japan Dolphin Day, IDA hosted demonstrations in San Francisco, Los Angeles, and Portland.

At our Bay Area demo, held in partnership with Earth Island Institute (EII), activists stood outside the Japanese Consulate in San Francisco with large banners handing out IDA's flyer on the Japanese drive fisheries, and made a splash with a larger-than-life inflatable dolphin. Mark Palmer, Assistant Director of EII's International Marine Mammal Project, also went in inside and met with the Japanese Consul, Mitsuko Koike. Through her translator, he explained the public's concerns about the dolphin kill in Japan, especially with the expanded use of dolphin meat in school lunch programs despite the dangerous levels of mercury contamination, and asked that she convey our message to the Japanese government.

Check out pictures of this year's events.