Photo/Illutration Saitama prefectural government workers prepare to bury culled hogs infected with hog cholera in Chichibu, Saitama Prefecture, on Sept 14. (Provided by Saitama prefectural government)

According to records, a quirky custom known as "animal trials" was practiced in medieval Europe.

Animals were literally tried in courts of law for harming or killing humans, and executed or punished if found guilty.

There is something intriguing about the societal mindset of the time that sought to apply the legal system to non-human animals, of which many happened to be pigs.

Pigs were livestock, but apparently still closer to wild boars by nature--tusked and ferocious, and responsible for endless fatalities involving children, according to the book "Dobutsu Saiban" (Animal trial) by historian Shunichi Ikegami.

The pig, as we know it today, is the result of decades of domestication.

But even today, the pig and the wild boar are much more similar than their appearances suggest. I realized this acutely from the recent outbreak of classical swine fever (CSF), or hog cholera, in Japan.

It appears that the CSF virus was brought to pig farms by infected wild boars that were roaming free. Farmers put up protective fences, but the epidemic could not be contained.

Initially, the farm ministry dragged its feet on getting the pigs vaccinated against CSF, afraid that doing so might result in export restrictions under international rules. But when the contagion spread from the Tokai region to the Kanto region, the government was forced to take action: The farm ministry gave the green light to vaccinations.

But even though the central government is calling the shots, it is ultimately up to each prefectural government to decide how to deal with the crisis.

I just hope all prefectural authorities will act in concert, lest there be cases of some prefectures not taking the situation as seriously as their neighbors. After all, prefectural borders do not exist for wild boars which, in Japan, are considered to symbolize acts of headlong recklessness.

In China, a different strain of swine fever virus is said to be spreading out of control, sending the price of pork sky-high.

Here in Japan, I feel truly thankful that I can still enjoy delicious pork dishes such as "shoga-yaki" (ginger-flavored sauteed pork) and "tonkatsu" (deep-fried breaded pork cutlet).

I pray for early containment of the contagion.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Sept. 26

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Vox Populi, Vox Dei is a popular daily column that takes up a wide range of topics, including culture, arts and social trends and developments. Written by veteran Asahi Shimbun writers, the column provides useful perspectives on and insights into contemporary Japan and its culture.