For Kuniko Oyakawa, that cetaceans may be more intelligent than, say, cows, pigs or chickens is not why she opposes whaling — she is against eating any wild creature.
Oyakawa is one of the first two Japanese to fully identify themselves as crew members of Sea Shepherd Conservation Society's vessels, which next month will try to block Japan's whale hunt. She is motivated by the belief that the human population has grown so large that people must stop eating wild animals to minimize the disruption to ecosystems.
"I realize meat-eating people do not plan to stop eating meat. But we should at least live a humble life and (not plunder) the Earth," the 58-year-old vegetarian told The Japan Times from Brussels. "My answer is, 'Do not eat wild animals.' "