Pretoria - Dozens of animal rights activists gathered outside the Japanese embassy in Groenkloof at the weekend to protest against the capture and slaughter of dolphins and small whales in Taiji, Japan.
On Saturday, about 100 protesters gathered to hand over a memorandum to Japanese embassy officials. The memo pleaded with the Japanese government to put an end to the practice, but there was no one at the embassy to accept it.
“The dolphin drives in Taiji are brutally cruel, completely unnecessary and have no place in the 21st century,” it read.
Similar protests were held in Durban and Cape Town.
Activists wearing shirts labelled Walk Against Captivity and No More handed out flyers to motorists at traffic lights near the embassy. They also lined the streets with dolphin-shaped balloons and posters, while singing to raise awareness about the plight of dolphins.
From September 1 to the end of February the next year, the coastal town of Taiji has its dolphin drive hunt in which thousands are trapped in a cove and are either taken into captivity or slaughtered.
The “most attractive” are captured and trained so they can be sold to aquariums around the world. Dolphins not “suitable” for captivity are slaughtered. It is rare that they are set free if deemed unsuitable.
The town has a self-imposed quota of 2 400 captured and slaughtered dolphins a year.
The founder of Walk Against Captivity, Beverley Botha, has been to Taiji herself and seen dolphins slaughtered.
“Taiji could be a mecca for tourism if the dolphin slaughter stops. Japan will be so much richer once it ends its destruction of whales and dolphins,” she said.
There are plans to organise at least three protests outside the embassy in Pretoria every year. - Pretoria News