In Defense of Animals signed onto a letter requesting that Japan put a permanent end to the country’s dolphin killing and whaling programs.

The letter, sent to Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, was signed by a total of 23 organizations from around the world, representing over 2 million members. Initiated by the International Marine Mammal Project, the letter requests the complete halting of cetacean killing ahead of the anticipated 2020 Olympics, scheduled for Tokyo. “A gesture of international cooperation and goodwill by Japan towards whales and dolphins would have immense global value,” the letter states.

The Taiji dolphin drive season is well underway, with many dolphins already having been slaughtered – a pod of pilot whales was decimated early in September. In December, the whaling fleets will be headed to the Southern Antarctic Ocean once again, where they will harpoon hundreds of minke whales.

To learn more about what you can do to help dolphins and whales around the world, visit In Defense of Animal’s Cetacean Project page.