TOKYO - Court hearings began to stop dolphin hunting in a Japanese village on Friday , with plaintiffs saying the grisly annual hunts, made famous in an Oscar-winning documentary, violate animal protection laws due to their"extreme cruelty".
The first legal action of its kind launched by animal welfare charity Action for Dolpins and joined by two plaintiffs - marine activist Ren Yabuki and a man who grew up in Taiji but wants to remain anonymous due to fears of harassment - argues that dolphins are protected under Japanese animal welfare laws but are subjected to"extreme acts of cruelty" in the hunt.
"We also allege that the fishermen violate the legal conditions of their hunting permit because they catch more dolphins than is allowed," the plaintiffs said in a summary of their legal action, filed in February. A Taiji official said she was not able to comment, but the town has long maintained the hunt is a traditional part of their livelihood in an area that has hunted dolphins and whales for thousands of years.
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