The Welsh Liberal Democrats Assembly Member for South Wales West, Peter Black has condemned the inhumane slaughter of dolphins in Japan.
Mr. Black expressed his concerns about the practice in an Assembly motion tabled yesterday, known as an Statement of Opinion.
The cruel way in which dolphins are hunted and slaughtered in Taiji, a town on Japan’s Pacific coast, has attracted international criticism.
Mr. Black’s motion aims to raise awareness of the issue and presses the Welsh Government to raise the issue with the Japanese authorities.
Commenting, Mr. Black said:
“Right now, Japanese fishermen are rounding up live dolphins to kill for meat, using some really barbaric methods, or sell into a lifetime of captivity. Drive hunts cause huge distress and panic to dolphins and this continuing practice is simply unacceptable.
“Many dolphins can take up to half an hour to die under these brutal methods, which the Japanese Government has tried to defend as part of Taiji’s cultural heritage. By setting annual quotas of 20,000 dolphin, whale and porpoise kills, the Japanese Government are continuing to support cruel practices. It’s vital that the international community sends a clear message of condemnation, and I hope the Welsh Government will play a key part in that.”
