September 1st culminates the annual dolphin drive hunt in Taiji---a whaling town in Wakayama, Japan---where thousands of dolphins and small whales are herded into a cove to be either sold to oceanariums all over the world or are slaughtered for human consumption.

The alleged brutality of the hunt, as featured in documentaries like The Cove (2009), has gained criticism and protests from animal welfare groups worldwide and led to the founding of “Japan Dolphins Day” by former dolphin trainer-turned-animal rights activist, Ric O’barry.

Every year, a day before the official start of the dolphin cull in Taiji, dolphin activists all over the world march in peaceful protest to their Japanese embassies to urge the Japanese government to put an end to the killings.

This year, Japan Dolphin’s Day aims to be the single largest simultaneous protest march for the dolphins of Taiji, with eighty cities representing twenty-nine countries participating.

In the Philippines, the protest is spearheaded by the Earth Island Institute (EII) in cooperation with the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the Philippine Animal Welfare Society (PAWS), Compassion and Responsibility for Animals (CARA), and the Dolphins Love Freedom Network (DLFN).

On August 31st, Friday, volunteers from said organizations braved the sweltering mid-day heat and marched in front of the Embassy of Japan in Pasay City carrying posters with various messages aimed at only one thing: to “LET THE DOLPHINS LIVE AND BE FREE.”

Trixie Concepcion of Earth Island Institute stated, “The Philippine Government must stop supporting the dolphin slaughter in Japan by banning the importation of dolphins into the country. These importations run counter to the existing laws in the country.”