Taiji Appeals Ruling by Wakayama District Court

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Wild-caught bottlenose dolphin being shipped to an aquarium for public display, Taiji, Japan

19Jan

Blog, Campaigns, Japan | Posts by : Cara Sands

On April 22, 2022, Ren Yabuki, Director of Life Investigation Agency in conjunction with Dolphin Project, filed a lawsuit against the town of Taiji over the redaction of information from public documents related to the handling of cetaceans. These included: sales contracts, invoices, export documents, and inventories for live cetaceans.

On September 29, 2023, Wakayama District Court Judge Ayako Takahashi ruled that the decision made by the town of Taiji not to disclose information relating to the dolphin drive hunts was deemed illegal. The town objected, stating that if this information was to be made public, it would infringe upon their reputation, and suggest that the town is profiting unfairly from the sale of cetaceans. Their intention, or so they claimed, was not to hide information from its residents, but rather from groups opposing dolphin captivity. Predictably, the town has filed an appeal against this ruling.

Heavily redacted documentation pertaining to the handling of cetaceans, Taiji, Japan. Credit: Life Investigation Agency

Your support is urgently needed

Now that the town of Taiji has appealed, there is an urgent need to continue our legal work to defend dolphins.

The fight to abolish the dolphin slaughter and end the captive trade industry lies both in changing public opinion (through education within Japan) and achieving favorable legal outcomes. Dolphin Project, along with its Japanese counterparts, believe these are the most productive and viable solutions. Together with Life Investigation Agency, Dolphin Project has several lawsuits in litigation in Japanese courts, in addition to this one.

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