MOSCOW, September 16 (RIA Novosti) - Campaigners monitoring a bay in the Japanese town of Taiji witnessed the first dolphin slaughtering of the season, Agence Presse France (AFP) reported on Tuesday.
"First pod of 2014-2015 being driven into cove now," activists from the environmentalist group, Sea Shepherd, who call themselves Cove Guardians, tweeted at 10:33 am (1:33 GMT).
"First dolphin murder of the drive hunt season is complete as dead bodies are dragged to Taiji butcherhouse," The Cove Guardians tweeted an hour later.
Since the beginning of the annual six-month dolphin hunting season opened on September 1, campaigners have been watching over the secluded bay. Live streams of the bay have shown fishermen corralling hundreds of dolphins for slaughter, though the local fishermen's association could not immediately confirm the incident, AFP reported. So far, there are no details regarding the number of dolphins killed in the slaughter.
Those defending dolphin hunting, including the Japanese government, argue the practice is a tradition and that dolphins are not endangered while those opposed point out slaughters serve no purpose since dolphin meat is in very low demand and contains dangerous mercury levels.
Taiji locals have been refining whaling techniques since the early 17th century, and became known as a center for whaling in 1675. The Japanese town's controversial dolphin slaughters were brought to international attention in 2010 when it became the backdrop for the Oscar-winning documentary "The Cove," secretly filmed with underwater microphones and cameras. The International Whaling Commission (IWC) currently does not protect dolphins and porpoises, which is why Japan has killed some 20,000 of the animals every year, according to The Ecologist.
