Marine conservation and animal welfare advocates braved heavy rains on Monday to stage a protest in front of the Japanese Embassy in Pasay City, denouncing the annual dolphin hunt in Taiji, Japan.
According to RH Jecelle Ricafort's report, the demonstration was part of the global Japan Dolphin Day campaign, organized by the Earth Island Institute Asia Pacific, in partnership with the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS) and other allied organizations.
Carrying placards, tarpaulins, and hundreds of folded origami dolphins, protesters called on Japan to stop the dolphin slaughter and urged the public to boycott dolphin shows while supporting ethical marine ecotourism.
“The most gruesome, the most condemned killing of wild animals is going to start in Japan, in a little island known as Taiji. This practice started in the 1970s with several islands in Kuto, Iki, and Taiji. Because all of the dolphins have been decimated in these other islands, only Taiji dolphin slaughter remains," said Trixie Concepcion of Earth Island Institute Asia Pacific.
"But the difference this time is we plan to stop it. Since 2004, Earth Island Institute has been part of a movement that is seeking to stop the dolphin killings in Japan by organizing the Japanese people themselves," she added.
Concepcion stressed that the practice has “no scientific basis” and has been condemned by major international humane societies, including the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), which previously warned Japanese zoos to end dolphin sourcing from Taiji or risk losing membership.
Despite international condemnation, the hunt continues. Advocates noted that captured dolphins are often starved and trained to perform in marine shows, while thousands are slaughtered for meat.
Over the past decades, Taiji hunters reportedly killed more than 1,000 dolphins each year, with around 100 captured alive. Between 2023 and 2024 alone, conservation groups documented 833 dolphins killed in the town’s notorious cove.
Advocates explained that this is allegedly the result of the depletion of the local dolphin population and the sharp decline in demand for dolphin meat in Japan, which is often contaminated with high levels of mercury.
However, they pointed out that the trade of live dolphins remains highly profitable, with each one being sold for hundreds of thousands of pesos to marine parks abroad.
"Ang mangyayari, yung mga magaganda, cute na mga dolphins, hihiwalay sila. Sila yung ibebenta sa mga dolphin shows, dolphin parks sa China, sa iba't ibang bansa. Pero yung mga pangit o matatanda ng mga dolphins, yun ang kanilang makakatayin para sa sinasabing pagkain daw nila," she said.
"So wala pong basehan ito, itong pagpatayin ito in science, lalong-lalong walang basehan sa food security," Concepcion added.
