1st talks between whaling town, environmentalists end with no accord+

WAKAYAMA, Japan, Nov. 2 Kyodo - The first-ever dialogue between local leaders in the town of Taiji, Wakayama Prefecture, and foreign activists campaigning against dolphin hunting there ended Tuesday with no signs of compromise from either side, as widely expected.

The activists from three groups, including the U.S.-based Sea Shepherd
Conservation Society, said that although they understand the practice is
longstanding in the town and part of its culture, dolphin hunting is inhumane
and cannot be justified by tradition.
The town's representatives, including Taiji Mayor Kazutaka Sangen, argued that
whaling and dolphin hunting provide a livelihood for people and that it is
important to have a spirit of respect for different cultures.
Due to security concerns, the high-profile meeting in the whaling town in
western Japan was not open to the general public and only journalists were
allowed to observe the exchange of views, which was conducted through
interpreters.
Five people represented the town at the meeting, including the mayor and senior
officials of a local fisheries cooperative association. They sat down across
from four environmentalists on stage at a local community hall.
Richard O'Barry, a U.S. dolphin conservationist who appeared in the
Oscar-winning U.S. documentary film ''The Cove,'' was supposed to be the fifth
participant from the protest groups, but canceled his attendance, although he
showed up at the venue of the talks.
According to The Associated Press, O'Barry said he would not participate due to
''severe restrictions on the Japanese and international media.'' Members of
some Japanese media outlets were denied entry by the meeting's organizers on
the grounds that they failed to submit questions and the names of participating
journalists in advance as requested.
At the meeting, Katsutoshi Mihara, chairman of the Taiji Town Assembly, said,
''We have been relying on marine resources for our livelihood. We can't just
let you force your values on us.''
After the meeting, the town's fisheries cooperative association issued its
first statement on the hunting issue, saying ''Taiji's tradition will survive,
without succumbing to baseless attacks.''
Scott West, a member of Sea Shepherd, said some things have to end when the
time comes and that he had no plans to terminate his protest activities.
When asked by the dolphin conservationists what they can do for the benefit of
the town, Mayor Sangen said, ''Things about the town will be decided by its
residents.''
The town officials also said while they do not want to engage in sterile
discussions over regional food culture, they will continue seeking
understanding of their own whenever necessary.
AP quoted West before the meeting, saying, ''It is a huge waste of time.''
West, who has been in the town for nearly two months to monitor the hunts, said
the only reason he would attend the meeting was that both sides had agreed to
meet, which was a small step forward, the news agency said.
The small town of some 3,500 was abuzz, as in addition to Japanese journalists,
many reporters and photographers from foreign media organizations, including
from the United States and the Middle East, came to cover the event. Police
vehicles patrolled around the community hall where the meeting took place.
In Tokyo, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshito Sengoku commented on the meeting,
saying, ''Dolphin hunting has been part of Japanese culture since olden times.
There is much criticism, but I hope (people in Taiji) will develop their
discussions in a way to win understanding.''
''It will become more important in (the era of) globalization to cherish one's
indigenous culture,'' the top government spokesman noted.
The coastal town, where the hunting of whales and dolphins has been a mainstay
industry, was brought into the spotlight after ''The Cove,'' which depicted and
attacked dolphin hunting there, won the Academy Award for best documentary in
March this year.
Anti-hunt activists have been protesting in the town since September when
fishermen began their annual hunt of dolphins, whales and other cetaceans in
waters off Taiji.
The Taiji town government had been refusing to hold any talks with the
anti-hunt groups on the grounds that the hunt is legal and conducted with the
permission of the prefecture's governor.
But after a civic group in the prefecture asked both sides to cooperate to
create an opportunity for thinking about dolphin hunting, they agreed to hold
the meeting.
According to the Fisheries Agency, dolphins are classified as cetaceans but are
not among the species managed by the International Whaling Commission.
In order to catch dolphins in Japan, a prefectural governor's permission is
required. At present, hunting permits have been issued in eight prefectures --
Hokkaido, Aomori, Iwate, Miyagi, Chiba, Shizuoka, Wakayama and Okinawa.
Denmark and some island nations in the South Pacific also engage in dolphin
hunting, but Japan's annual catch is the largest.
==Kyodo