Japan defends dolphin hunting at Taiji Cove

Japanese dolphin hunt stirs outrage
Tokyo, Japan The annual slaughter of bottlenose dolphins in an infamous Japanese cove ended Tuesday.

About 500 dolphins were driven into the cove this year, a larger number than usual, according to the local Taiji fishermen's union. A fisherman who is a union board member, and who did not want to be named, told CNN that the total number of dolphins to be captured or slaughtered was less than 100, and that the rest would be released.

The yearly event is a focal point of the Taiji community's dolphin hunting season, which many in the community in southwest Japan view as a long-held tradition.

But the hunt is heavily scrutinized by environmental activists, who have been monitoring activities and livestreaming and tweeting about the latest developments.

In recent days, environmentalist group the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has provided livestreams showing bottlenose dolphins splashing frantically as they tried to escape their human captors. Dolphins separated by nets into smaller partitions bobbed up and down, trying to reach other members of their pod. The group said that the dolphins appeared bloodied, and had had nothing to eat since their capture in Taiji Cove four days ago.

The union representative said that the fishermen had introduced what they considered a "more humane" method of slaughtering the dolphins, cutting their spines on the beach to kill the animals more swiftly and cause them less pain.

Defending tradition

Although the hunting of dolphins is widely condemned in the West, many in Japan defend the practice as a local custom -- and say it is no different to the slaughter of other animals for meat.

Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters at a news conference Monday that marine mammals including dolphins were "very important water resources."

"Dolphin fishing is one of traditional fishing forms of our country and is carried out appropriately in accordance with the law. Dolphin is not covered by the International Whaling Commission control and it's controlled under responsibility of each country."

CNN's Junko Ogura and Laura Smith-Spark contributed to this report. Madison Park reported and wrote from Hong Kong. Yoko Wakatsuki reported from Tokyo.
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