OSAKA: A zoo in the western Japan city of Osaka is holding an exhibit featuring taxidermy of animals killed during World War II, to educate the public about the importance of peace.

Visitors to the exhibit at Osaka Tennoji Zoo, which runs through Sunday, said that they felt the importance of life and did not want war to happen.

Osaka Tennoji Zoo is the third oldest zoo in Japan, opening in January 1915. Between September 1943 and March 1944, 26 animals including brown bears and lions were killed out of fears that they would escape and attack humans if their cages were destroyed in air raids.

The animals were given poisoned food, while one leopard which did not eat its food was strangled to death with a rope.

The exhibit features panels explaining the tragedy as well as five stuffed animals, including the leopard. Also on display is a photograph of a chimpanzee dressed as a soldier, which was taken to drum up support for the war.

A video depicting the current state of zoos in Ukraine under the Russian invasion is also being shown.

“I don’t want war to happen again,” said an 8-year-old boy from the city of Sakai in Osaka Prefecture, who was visiting with his grandmother.

“I hope that they will remember that such a tragic thing happened,” a 38-year-old man from the city of Osaka said of his three children.

“We want to tell many people that animals are affected by war,” Harunobu Hisada, a zoo official, said. “We hope to make as many people as possible feel something.”

JIJI Press