Former Guns ‘N Roses Drummer Witnesses Dolphin Slaughter in Japan

Rocker slams annual hunt and vows to bring more musicians to protest

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Paul Morigi / Getty Images for Ovation

Guns N' Roses drummer Matt Sorum on behalf of Ovation talks about the importance of arts funding on Arts Advocacy Day sponsored by Ovation at Cannon House Office Building on Apr. 9, 2013 in Washington, DC.

Former Guns ‘N Roses drummer Matt Sorum came to the shores of a remote Japanese fishing village on Monday to protest the community’s annual dolphin hunt. Sorum watched in horror as local fishermen herded dolphins into an isolated cove and speared them to death.

The scene was “like a bad nightmare,” Sorum told the Associated Press, adding that he would bring more heavyweight rock stars to Japan to protest the hunt.

The little-known fishing village of Taiji, in central Japan, gained instant notoriety when the Academy-award winning documentary The Cove depicted the hunt in all of its gory detail. The fishermen contend that foreign protestors do not understand or respect their local culture and are hypocritically overlooking their own slaughterhouses.

Meanwhile Japanese nationalists taunted protestors by gathering in Taiji for what appeared to be a dolphin meat barbecue. The nature of the meat served was not confirmed by independent sources, though it was heavily implied over loudspeakers as the fishermen turned their slabs on the grill.

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