1,400 Dolphins were killed, sparking rage and indignation all across the globe. The practise of hunting dolphins took place in the Faroe Islands, an autonomous Danish territory. The single biggest catch of more than 1,400 white-sided dolphins in a day was rejected in the northern archipelago. Many Faroese contemplate whale meat as an essential part of their food culture and history. The pilot whale hunt is an important part of Faroese social culture. In their literature and art, grindadrap is the chief motive.
The Danish repetition is, “Threatening boys, to slaughter the grind that’s our desire” or “Healthy lads grind to slay – that’s what they like.”
“It is a dramatic sight to the people of Faroe whale hunts who are unfamiliar with the hunting and slay of mammals”, said a government representative. These kinds of hunts are said to be well organised and fully regulated, according to the officials.
The spokesperson of the government said the North Atlantic island has a population of around 50,000 people who are typically engaged in hunting pilot whales instead of dolphins.
Av Ran says that “We don’t kill such a big number, but there are few of them in the ‘grind’”. The island follows “grindadrape” and they surround the whales with the wide semi-circle of fishing boats, which force them to drive into a bay where they are beached and slay. “It took some time to kill all of them and it was quite extreme,” said av Rana.
The 53% of the population of the island informed av Rana that they are opposed to the “grind” and they have no such plans. Photos of bloodied corpses of over 1,000 Atlantic white-sided dolphins emerging on social media sparked outrage. It is a sustainable way of hunting asserted by the authorities.
The charity Sea Shepherd, which is campaigning besides the hunting of whales and dolphins, described the practice as barbaric. There is no such big deal in maintaining the island nation, which has an estimated 100,000 pilot whales in the water and from them, they slaughtered 600 last year.
Singhal Bhoomi Pawan