Massacre of Dolphins Cover Up!

international | animal rights | press release

Friday August 29, 2008 16:52

by ALiberation - ALiberation

aliberationnow at gmail dot com

www.vegaplanet.org

086 3203643

Save Japan’s Dolphins Day 3rd Sept 2008

Each year, from October to March, more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises are killed by fishermen in Japan.

These dolphins are killed to supply the meat trade, to suppress competition, to prevent pressure on the Whaling and Tuna fish industry and to sell dolphins to aquariums and dolpinariums

Bloody Cove

Massacre of Dolphins Cover Up!

Save Japan’s Dolphins Day 3rd Sept 2008

An international day of protest will be held on Sept 3rd to call on the Japanese authorities to ban the horrific killing of dolphins, porpoises and other small whales.

ALiberation will once again participate in this global protest. Please join us outside the Japanese Embassy.

When : 3rd of Sept 2008.
Time : 1pm
Where : Japanese Embassy
Nutley Building
Merrion Square
Nutley Lane
Dublin 4
Phone: 086 3203643, Ed
Email: aliberationnow@gmail.com

• Each year, from October to March, more than 20,000 dolphins and porpoises are killed by fishermen in Japan.

• These dolphins are killed to supply the meat trade, to suppress competition, to prevent pressure on the Whaling and Tuna fish industry and to sell dolphins to aquariums and dolpinariums.

• The fishermen have admitted that a cover up is necessary to maintain this business that is little known about in Japan. Dolphin meat sold in supermarkets of Japan has been found to contain mercury levels of 36 times the recommended levels issued by the Health, Labour and Welfare Ministry of Japan. Many supermarkets refuse to stock dolphin meat but despite this the Japanese Government subsidizes this industry by using dolphin meat in school lunch programs.

• The extent of the cover up is revealed by the silence from both the Japanese Government and Japanese media, which is contrary to Article 21 (2) of the Japanese Constitution which states “No censorship shall be maintained, nor shall the secrecy of any means of communication be violated.”

• Dolphins that are young and unblemished are chosen directly at the bay by dolphin trainers who are keen to keep this cruel industry alive. A dead dolphin is worth about $700 but a live dolphin for a dolphinarium, aquarium or a “swim with dolphins” business can fetch $154,000.

• The fishermen in villages like Taiji go out in small boats to known dolphin migratory routes. Positioning their boats strategically, they space out to form a line and wait for the dolphins. When the dolphins arrive, the fishermen lower stainless steel poles into the water, and by banging on the poles they create a wall of sound underwater. The sound interferes with the dolphins' ability to navigate - it disorients and panics them. The dolphins swim away from the sound and the fisherman herd them into a small hidden bay. Once in the bay, nets are drawn across the mouth of the bay to keep them penned in. They panic as nets close in, forcing them to remain trapped in a confined space.

• The fishermen return the next day at sunrise to kill the dolphins, slashing their throats with knives or stabbing them with spears. The water turns red with their blood, and the air fills with their screams.

• Although officially, the dolphins are killed to supply dolphin meat to the Japanese population, the hidden reasons behind it has to do more with suppressing competition. Ignoring the problem of human over-fishing, the fishermen prefer to blame the dolphins for eating too much fish, therefore, supported by the government, eradicate as many dolphins as possible to keep the fishes for themselves.

• One of the main reasons that the killing continues is that very few people around the world even know it is happening. The majority of people in Japan are also totally unaware of this annual government-sanctioned dolphin blood bath.

• The only way to put an end to this barbaric practice is to put pressure on the authorities in Tokyo, so they stop giving permits to the fishermen.

• By ignoring the interests and rights of the dolphins, porpoises, whales and other animals and by the Japanese government, media and fishermen ignoring the Japanese constitution, then Japans Fishermen will continue this blood bath until this cover up is exposed.

For more info on the dolphin slaughter, visit:
www.savejapandolphins.org
http://www.seashepherd.org/taiji/