Dear GEP-ED, Next month, The Cove will be coming out in theaters in Japan (I assume in a somewhat limited fashion). As I am currently employed at a university in Japan and interested in talking about this issue as part of a unit on whaling in my international issues course, I am looking for some additional information. I did some quick digging around the internet and have only found two types of material: scientific reports on mercury levels of dolphins caught around Japan and organizations dedicated to saving dolphins from Japanese hunting.
Basically, I am looking for more information about what happens to the dolphins after being killed, which is somewhat missed in the movie. There are some suggestions about food consumption in Japan, but it is so rare to see whale in markets here and with such high mercury content, I do not believe this could be a true primary use for dolphin. In addition, there are some stories of nationalist party influence or Yakuza (mafia) influence on the dolphin hunts here. Are there any academic sources that might document such links? Although I am particularly interested in these questions, if you have any readings that could supplement this topic, that would be great. Thank you all in advance for your assistance. Feel free to respond off the list to [email protected] or [email protected] and I will post a complete list of all the results. Sincerely, -- Steven B Rothman, Ph.D. Assistant Professor, Asia Pacific Studies Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University 1-1 Jumonjibaru, Beppu-City, Oita Japan 874-8577 [email protected] Home Page: http://web.me.com/psprof/ LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/psprof
