It's frightening that Japan is bowing to the pressure that pro-dolphin slaughter and whale slaughter groups are exerting over the planned screenings of the excellent documentary The Cove (Filmstalker review)

It's also extremely sad that the nation is hiding from the barbaric, unnecessary practice that is also dangerous to the health of the Japanese people, and what's more that groups are managing to have freedom of speech curtailed so much.

I already wrote about the story of The Cove being cancelled from Japanese cinemas and the distribution company receiving threatening calls and picket lines, but the latest story from Variety tells us that there's even more pressure being exerted on the film.

Let's not forget that not only is the documentary an Oscar winner, it's also factually spot on and captures Japanese people in the town of Taiji corralling dolphins into a cove and slaughtering them in obscene ways to then sell them as food, food that is dangerously high in mercury.

It also reveals the practices of offering other non-whaling countries various services and money in order to join the International Whaling Commission and vote for them to be able to start slaughtering whales too, even though they are dangerously high in mercury too.

However they continue to deny it with the film being removed from more cinemas. Tokyo's Meiji University was set to show the film on campus and then have the dolphin campaigner Ric O'Barry appear for a Q&A;, now that's been cancelled.

The Contemporary History Research Society were sponsoring the event and said:

"...the university to think carefully about the freedom of expression guaranteed in the Constitution."

Isn't that to play the film and allow freedom of speech and expression? Barry says it perfectly:

"Why are they so scared about the truth about the dolphin slaughter getting out? Because they know that it's indefensible -- tragically cruel -- scientifically insupportable."

If you haven't seen The Cove (Filmstalker review) then I recommend you do, and seek out the truth of these horrible events, particularly if you're Japanese and being restricted in knowing the terrible truth.