Japanese Dolphin Hunter Has Epiphany, Now Runs Sightseeing Tours of the Beloved Sea Creature
In the saga of dolphins versus hunters in Japan, one fisherman in Japan has managed to turn the story around.
Izumi Ishii, a former dolphin hunter in the city of Futo, spent years capturing and slaughtering dolphins. The living cetaceans were handpicked and delivered to marine parks for entertainment acts, while others were killed for their meat. But after one key moment with a dolphin, Ishii had a change of heart and quit the practice several years ago.
MORE: Mercury Poisoning From Dolphin Meat Remains a Major Concern for 'Cove' Activists
Ishii now operates a dolphin-watching business, which he began in 2002. He uses the same boat that he did for hunting, but instead takes tourists out to the Futo coastline to watch dolphins and whales. “I encourage Japanese people to go dolphin watching. [Ishii] represents a lot of hope for the future,” said Ric O’Barry, leader of the Save Japan Dolphins campaign, to TakePart. “He’s a guy who used to drive them in and slit their throat. He told me one day that the dolphin was actually crying. He said he looked into this dolphin’s eye and had this big moment and dropped the knife and stopped doing it.”
Ishii’s transformation is certainly a unique one. As a third-generation dolphin hunter, he followed in the footsteps of his father and grandfather. But after issues with other Futo fishermen over an illegal whale catch, he began to sympathize with the dolphins.
His story is one dolphin activists hope to emulate in Taiji, a coastal town in Japan that continues the hunting practice. The demand for dolphin meat is slowly declining in the area, leading to a shorter hunting season and fewer dolphins killed. Save Japan Dolphins, a campaign from the Earth Island Institute’s International Marine Mammal Project, is hoping to offer alternatives for the fisherman as the market gradually shrinks.
“For example, we may help them develop whale-watching and dolphin-watching opportunities, which bring in a lot of people,” said Mark Palmer, associate director of the International Marine Mammal Project. “We want to promote Taiji as a place of recreation.”
Palmer cited fishermen in other areas of Japan, who have developed programs to let tourists go swimming with wild dolphins.
One of Save Japan Dolphins’ main goals is to change the mindset in Japan on dolphin hunting, thus propelling pressure from native residents, not simply Western outsiders.
“[Ishii] told me that he wants to make dolphins the symbol of the oceans around the world, to help stop pollution, squandering of resources, and other environmental problems,” O’Barry wrote on Save Japan Dolphins’ blog. “His is a marvelous story, and one we think the fishermen in Taiji and other ports in Japan must learn.”
Will you participate in protesting against Japan’s dolphin slaughter? Let us know in the comments.
Related stories on TakePart:
• Taiji Dolphin Drive Hunt 2012: Follow the Tragedy on Twitter
• Taiji: The Captive Connection
• Cove 101: A Primer on Taiji, Japan's Senseless Dolphin Slaughter
Kelly Zhou hails from the Bay Area and is currently a student in Los Angeles. She has written on a variety of topics, predominantly focusing on politics and education. Email Kelly | @kelllyzhou | TakePart.com
