'Sadistic violence': Sea Shepherd founder's fear after dolphin massacre
WARNING - GRAPHIC CONTENT: Hunters who killed close to 1500 dolphins may have taken part in the largest ever “dolphin massacre” in the Faroe Islands according to Sea Shepherd founder Captain Paul Watson.
Speaking to Yahoo News Australia from New York, Captain Watson described Sunday's incident as “incredibly brutal”, adding that there was no possible way to slaughter such a large number of dolphins humanely.
The killing of an estimated 1428 white-sided dolphins in one day by the Faroese is close to what Japanese fishermen in Taiji take during an entire season.
“I don't understand how Europe can condemn Japanese killing of whales and killing the dolphins, and yet turned a blind eye to what's going on in their own waters,” Captain Watson said.
Looking over horrifying photos and videos which were filmed by activists stationed on the self-governing Danish archipelago, he described it as an “orgy of sadistic violence”.
“They drove these dolphins into the beach or ran over them over, cut them up with the propellers on the boats, and then systematically began to slaughter them,” he said.
“It was grossly inhumane.”
Captain Watson fears hunters will become 'more violent'
Known across the islands as the "grindadrap”, which translates as “murder of whales”, it is permitted by authorities who deem it a cultural practice.
Despite Sunday's massive slaughter receiving worldwide attention, Captain Watson is not confident that Denmark or the European Union will clamp down on the practice.
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He has been campaigning against the Faroese hunters since the 1980s and now fears that government inaction will lead them to become “even more violent”.
“It's extremely frustrating that you know that they continue to do this and nobody takes any action,” Captain Watson said.
“The Danish government, the European Union, nobody does anything they just allow it to go on.”
Many observers have suggested that with less than 50,000 residents it will be impossible to process so many dolphins for their meat.
Faroe Islands locals voice opposition to hunt
Describing Sunday's slaughter as a “perversion of a culture”, Captain Watson said he has been buoyed that some Faroese are beginning to speak out against what happened.
“Now we have people who are actually working with us in the Faroe Islands, people who were actually opposed to it,” he said.
“That's that's a significant change that there are Faroese people who are opposing it.”
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