The Cove: A Slaughter in the Ocean

This is not an easy post to write. I had to watch it again. And I almost didn’t want to because I had to recall the haunting images again and put into words what I saw. To tell you about this bloody massacre.  And I admit, I put it off for a while, meandered a bit because it was wrenching. I love dolphins just as I love the ocean and I am quite disturbed by the images of its slaughter in Taiji. Sadly, it is still happening today. Because even if the documentary won an Oscar in 2010 and viewed by the world, the Japanese fishermen are still capturing and killing dolphins in Taiji.

The Cove is a documentary directed by Louis Psihoyos, one of the founders of the Oceanic Preservation Society. Together with Rick’O Barry, the trainer of the series Flipper they covertly filmed dolphin killings in a cove in Taiji.

Rick O’ Barry became a famous dolphin trainer in the 1960s because of Flipper, a show about the adventures of a dolphin. And after Flipper, he became an activist, letting out dolphins out of cages and protesting dolphin shows. According to him, the turning point had been watching “Cathy” one of the dolphins who played Flipper commit “suicide” in his arms. Not faring well in captivity, she decided not to take her next breath and sink in the bottom.

Dolphins are not only intelligent creatures but freedom loving. They love surfing on the waves and swimming freely in front of ships. One surfer claims a connection with these freedom-loving animals and even had a dolphin save him from a tiger shark. Dolphins are also acoustic creatures and uses sonar ability to catch their prey. Sonar is the ability to locate an object by bouncing off soundwaves. So in captivity, with sounds bouncing off glass walls surrounding them and cheers from people, the dolphins become distressed. They develop ulcers and are regularly given medicine–injected food to counteract this ailment.

Activists like O’Barry have been put to jail protecting these creatures and some have died for it. But even if going to jail had been part of his life,  O’Barry seems to be bent on trying to undo the harm that befell these creatures due to the popularity of Flipper. Watching him, I can sense the guilt that still plagued him because the show’s popularity gave rise to more dolphins shows and more dolphin captures.

According to the documentary, Taiji is the largest supplier of dolphins to marine parks and swim with dolphin programs around the world. Maybe that’s why fishermen and local officials of Taiji continue to block any attempt of filming.  And this is why the crew had to resort to covert means.

The director assembled a special team to help him in his endeavor, his “Ocean’s 11” and this includes ex-military, special effects guys, free divers and other daring individuals willing to help him. They made plans to infiltrate the cove which was dangerous because they are already being followed by the police. Because if you are with Ric O’Barry, a well-known activist, something is always up.

But before they finally saw what happened inside the cove, they had to dangerously set up HD cameras disguised as rocks in the middle of the night,  also using thermal cameras to see if anybody’s watching  them while the free divers set up hydrophones in dark waters with waves furiously breaking on the surf.

These individuals didn’t need to put themselves in danger because if caught they can be put to jail for 28 days. They came there to use their talents for a good cause, to let the world know what is happening to the dolphins of Taiji. So they had cellphones with the number of the US embassy inside their pockets just in case.

And then they saw it.

The boats with long rods poised to the ocean floor with fishermen hammering on it, using the dolphins’ sonar ability against the species, creating a wall of sound to confuse them.

The dolphins are then corralled near the cove, trapped in nets.

Then the next day the dolphins for marine shows are picked, usually young females. The others are then killed even the mothers with their calves. Their meat is sold to supermarkets in Taiji and in other cities.

It was bloody. Horrific, like watching a dolphin genocide.

To think that dolphins should also be protected like whales because they are both covered by the IWC (International Whaling Commission) because they are both cetaceans. But the whales are in trouble themselves. The IWC can’t even stop their slaughter by Japanese whalers because of Japan’s strong presence in the body, a country that seems to resort to bribing smaller Carribean countries to question IWC’s whaling ban and claim that their whale killings are for research. Given this, smaller cetaceans like the dolphins has become the least part of IWC’s agenda.

It’s been three years and The Cove has won an Oscar. But the dolphin slaughter is still happening. Though I know the awareness have increased and more people want to help in stopping it. It’s still not enough. In Sea Shepherd’s website, there are group of volunteers who acts as Cove Guardians (http://www.seashepherd.org/cove-guardians/). They try to intervene but there is so much they can do. And they appeal us to write to some people in Japan to help them stop this. (I'm going to write one of these days).

Maybe together, we can stop them from killing these magnificent and intelligent creatures. We can stop the gruesome murders of these innocent animals that have continually marveled us with their intelligence, empathy, playfulness and joy. Because should the tradition of one country be strong enough excuse to kill these creatures? Or the money acquired for them warrants the reason to almost decimate them?

I have watched this and I can’t forget it. I may not be there physically protecting the dolphins in Taiji but I want my voice to be heard. To cry out in protest and have these words flow out in anger and sadness, to wail and grieve for all the dolphin blood spilled in the ocean.