Taiji: Joking About Dolphin Slaughter
By Mark J. Palmer
Every year in late August, an unusual invasion occurs in the small town of Taiji, Japan (population a bit less than 3,500). Around one hundred policemen from surrounding jurisdictions converge on Taiji, along with a long-range Coast Guard warship and personnel. They will stay an amazing six months in this small location, basically “guarding” a handful of dolphin hunters from nonexistent “eco-terrorists”.
Part of this display of national police power includes “training” of Coast Guard and police to race around Taiji’s harbor at high speeds in Zodiacs, presumably planning to rush to the aid of any dolphin hunters under siege by those darned environmentalists.
This year’s display, in front of Taiji officials, residents and Japanese media, included a new element, a joke at the expense of hundreds of dolphins about to be slaughtered in the notorious Cove. Our colleague Kunito Seko, a Japanese activist living in Taiji and working with the International Marine Mammal Project (IMMP), caught the moment with his camera.
A policeman holds a sign representing non-existent "eco-terrorists", as other police crash around Taiji chasing them for practice and to impress Japanese media. Needless to say, they waste their time and Japanese taxpayer's money. Photo Copyright: Kunito Seko
The Zodiac in question also sported a skull & bones pirate flag, one of the symbols used by Paul Watson (now in jail in Greenland, awaiting possible extradition to Japan for interfering with Japan’s illegal Antarctic whaling expeditions) and Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. This Zodiac represents “the enemy” for the police and Coast Guard to chase around the harbor and pretend to protect the good citizens of Taiji.
Thanks to Japanese taxpayers, the security presence in fact has very little to do or show for those six months of the dolphin hunt season. The season begins on September 1st, when small “banger” boats leave the harbor every morning to scout out where dolphin pods might be. If found, the dolphins are surrounded, with the hunters banging on metal poles submerged in the water, and herded into the Cove, where nets are pulled across the entrance to contain the dolphins. Interference from protestors has never been a problem – protestors have respected Japanese laws and refrained from interfering. So, the police and Coast Guard are largely wasted.
Often, the Taiji police force has been pretty good about working with activists and keeping things quiet. A few years ago, when I was on the beach at Taiji protesting the hunts with other activists from around the world, the Taiji police kept counter-protestors separated from us. Dolphin hunters and right-wing elements bash our “interference” in the slaughter.
But not all police are that friendly, and just as the dolphin hunters can be aggressive towards dolphin activists, some of the police are not always fair, even to Japanese activists protesting the dolphin slaughter.
The Japanese government posts a huge Coast Guard vessel in Taiji harbor for the entire six-month season of dolphin slaughter, Sept. 1st through the end of February every year. Photo Copyright: Kunito Seko
The dolphin hunt season extends through the end of February, 2025.
Most of the dolphins wind up in meat markets, but a few are kept alive to sell to aquariums. COVID interrupted Japan’s exports of live dolphins, and it is not clear if the trade will ever revive. We understand that Chinese aquariums are working to breed dolphins and get away from having to import wild dolphins from Taiji.
In 2004, when IMMP began our Save Japan Dolphins Campaign, 1,752 dolphins were captured in the notorious Cove; last season (2023-24), Taiji captures were estimated at 824 dolphins, a stunning 53% decline. It is uncertain if the hunts can continue to be financially viable at such low numbers, especially as sales of live dolphins, which is the real money-maker, have declined since the COVID pandemic.
Scientists recently shared a paper with the International Whaling Commission’s Science Committee documenting declines of several species of dolphins in Taiji’s catch data, suggesting a decline in local dolphin populations being depleted by the hunts.
IMMP’s experience is that our work to publicize the dangers of mercury to Japanese consumers, combined with the work of other activists and organizations, has resulted in a decline in the demand for dolphin meat, resulting in fewer dolphins being killed.
In any event, the lower number of dolphins that are slaughtered or captured in Taiji for a lifetime of captivity is still too many suffering dolphins. The hunts must end, and IMMP continues our campaign to end it.
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For a short video of how the current dolphin hunts unfold, please visit this page for Kunito Seko’s footage of the hunts.
We send our best wishes to Kunito Seko, an activist living in Taiji who daily photographs and films the dolphin hunts in Taiji.
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You can help support our Save Japan Dolphins Campaign to end the captures and killings of wild dolphins in Taiji, Japan, and other places around Japan. Please donate to protect dolphins from slaughter, captures, and other threats like oil spills and plastic pollution. IMMP works with local activists and mounts international political pressure on the Japanese government. Our goal is to end the hunts once and for all. Thank you for your support!
