The Cove - Japan’s Dolphin Slaughter

Taiji's Secret Cove

I recently went with a group of friends to see a movie called The Cove. With the enticement of dolphins, surfers and secret spy action we couldn’t resist. For the next 90 minutes I sat horrified, angered and inspired. This is a must see movie even if you don’t like dolphins….but really who doesnt like “Flipper”.

Director Louis Psihoyos and his team created a profoundly moving and controversial documentary film that swept this years film festival circuit winning over 14 awards. The film follows former “Flipper” dolphin trainer turned Eco-activist Ric O’Barry as he crusades to stop the ongoing dolphin slaughter in Taiji, Japan. O’Barry is highly critical of himself and blames the captive dolphin trade as the driving force that has lead to the mass dolphin killing in Japan. While O’Barry was a dolphin trainer he began to realize how amazingly intelligent these animals where and that they did not belong in captivity. Overnight he transformed from a dolphin trainer to a dolphin activist. Since then he has been arrested numerous times for freeing captive dolphins around the world and continues to fight for their freedom and survival.

Louis Psihoyos and Jim Clark founded The Oceanic Preservation Society (OPS) in 2005 as a way to shine a spotlight on the our amazing oceans and alert the public of the peril they face. After hearing about the mass killing of dolphins in the tiny fishing village of Taiji they new they had to do something. They met Ric O’Barry in Taiji with a hand picked Eco-swat team and hatched a plan to expose the secretive dolphin slaughter in the infamous cove. The town of Taiji has shrouded itself in secrecy to hide the fact that they are slaughtering dolphins by the thousands every year beginning in September as the dolphin migration begins. Some estimate more than 23,000 dolphins are killed each year. With the use of tourist propaganda the village of Taiji has created the illusion that the town loves dolphins and whales…while the killing takes place just around the corner in the secret cove.

Psihoyos and his team snuck around the island installing clandestine cameras and underwater microphones throughout the secret cove. The movie has a very edgy thriller effect to it for being an eco documentary. The footage that the team managed to capture is graphic and terrifying…as the Taiji fishermen corral hundreds if not thousands of migrating dolphins at a time while banging hammers on metal pipes inserted into the water. Once the dolphins are herded into the cove a small number are selected for captivity and the rest killed by harpoon turning the water blood red as dolphins frantically attempt to escape. The small number of dolphins selected for captivity sell for $150,000 while the slaughtered dolphins sell for $600 a piece ending up in fish markets often disguised as whale meat. The Japanese government allows dolphin meet to be sold in the fish markets as well as fed to school children even though it regularly contains 20 times the recommended levels of mercury. This policy has allowed high doses of mercury to be introduced into Japanese diets creating the very real possibility of another outbreak of Minamata disease in Japan.

Dolphins have become a multi billion dollar industry driven by captive dolphin tourism, which has unfortunately opened the door to the killing of thousands of dolphins a year. The Japanese government is one of the only countries in the world that condones the killing of dolphins. They are also the only country to continue to whale since the anti-whaling moratorium was passed in 1986 using the guise of scientific research.  The International Whaling Commission does not recognize dolphins as cetaceans therefore they are not currently protected. The majority of the IWC would like to see dolphins protected under the same whaling policy. Japan has been able to successfully lobby other poor or bankrupt countries in the IWC by paying them to support their whaling and dolphin harvesting policies. Many of these countries are located in the Caribbean where dolphin populations do not even exist. The IWC has allowed a minority to dictate policy for the benefit of few.

This is an emotional and eye opening film. The impact that it left on my friends and I was heavy. This film showcases dolphins as amazing creatures that are being decimated in brutal fashion. They are just one of the many species of creatures in our oceans that will soon disappear if something isn’t done to stop over fishing. If you are interested in doing something about it check out TakePart.com and SaveJapanDolphins.org. Go see the film and let me know what you think…its playing all over the country now!