Let dolphins swim free

I have written often enough about the cruelty towards dolphins hereabouts. I have done so in the hopes that any form of animal cruelty would be stopped.

I avoid ocean parks and anything that displays fish in aquariums, birds in cages or animals in captivity, as we should leave the animals in their natural habitat.

I am happy that international dolphin hero Ric O’Barry recently joined local dolphin lovers in painting dolphins on an entire school building in the Q.C. High School compound along Scout Ybardolaza St. in Quezon City.

I was told that O’Barry, marine mammal specialist for Earth Island Institute, painted dolphins with local dolphin hero, AG Saño, Rep. Teddy Casiño, the Dolphins Love Freedom Network (DLFN), and over 100 volunteers.

Saño has been painting dolphins on walls for a few years now. Matter of fact, he made a vow to paint 23,000 dolphins — the same number of dolphins killed in Japan in one dolphin-killing season.

 In a statement, Trixie Concepcion, regional director, Earth Island Institute, says O’Barry is in the country to inform Filipinos that they can do something very concrete to stop the dolphin killing in Japan, and that is to never buy tickets to dolphin shows, or go to marine parks featuring dolphins.

“People are now beginning to make the connection between the brutal hunts in Japan and dolphin parks in the Philippines. We are now seeing an overwhelming support to stop this abuse of dolphins by banning school field trips to parks featuring dolphins,” says Concepcion.

It is great to know that Rep. Raymond Palatino of the Kabataan Partylist filed House Resolution 2759, which seeks to ban school field trips to marine parks featuring dolphins and whales from cruel sources.

O’Barry is credited with bringing the world Flipper, the popular TV series of the ‘60s. At that time, he was responsible for capturing and training dolphins, which were used in the show. When a dolphin playing “Flipper” died in his arms, O’Barry realized that taking dolphins from the wild to use for amusement is simply wrong.

Since then, O’Barry has traveled the globe helping free captive dolphins, and lending support to local environmental groups to end dolphin captivity. For several years now, O’Barry has led the global effort to stop the massive slaughter of dolphins in Japan, which begins every September in a small coastal village called Taiji. His inspiring work was featured in the 2010 Oscar-winning documentary The Cove. The Philippines is in fact featured in The Cove as having imported dolphins from the hunts.

“The reason the hunts are happening in Japan is because dolphin parks pay a premium for the animals. A single, untrained animal can go for as much as $150,000,” says O’Barry. “Filipinos have a special role in stopping the dolphin killing in Taiji by refusing to buy a ticket to dolphin parks such as Ocean Adventure in Subic.”

O’Barry and Concepcion also visited the Dolphin Island at the Misamis Occidental Aquamarine Park (MOAP), where only three dolphins remain. According to caretakers, of the six “rescued” animals brought to the facility, three have died and only three remain. The animals were being used for swim and feeding programs with the general public.

“We were made to believe that Dolphin Island was a ‘rehabilitation’ facility where dolphins would be cared for and released as soon as they were fit to go,” said Concepcion. “It is unfortunate that some businessmen are now using the animals for swim and feeding programs, which can be quite dangerous to the public.”