The environmentalist group Sea Shepherd has released live stream footage of Japanese fishermen catching dolphins in the village of Taiji. It features divers and fishermen capturing at least 25 dolphins on Saturday. According to experts, this captive selection is done as a precursor to a mass slaughter.
According to Discovery News, these 25 dolphins are part of the 250 more which were held captive by the fishermen. The 25 dolphins that were caught include a young albino and they are likely to be sold in aquariums and marine parks. The organization theorized that the selection process might take until Sunday.
In 2010, the fishing village of Taiji became the subject of many controversies when it became the subject of "The Cove", an Academy-award winning documentary about the annual dolphin hunt in the area. Every year, local fishermen will drive hundreds of dolphins to a secluded bay, trap them there, and choose a few good ones to be sold in marine parks and aquariums. Those which were not chosen will be butchered for their meat.
The film featured the actual killing of hundreds of dolphins, making a moving scene when the blue waters turned red with the dolphins' blood.
When the film was released in Japan in 2010, many right-wing activists expressed their disagreement with the practice and staged their protest. However, the Taiji fishermen defended their annual hunt as a tradition, a practice that was passed onto them by their ancestors.
The selection process ended on Saturday afternoon but there were no clear indications yet if the mass slaughter has already begun. The Taiji Fisheries Cooperative Association was not available for comment. The association is in charge of the dolphin hunt which is taking place in their area.
"Those taken captive are forced to watch as the remaining members of their family are brutally killed for human consumption," Sea Shepherd said in a statement.
