Dazza Pictures

I’m starting something a little different and a little bold from the typical photography related posts.

As a leisure scuba diver, it has been on my mind for a while now and I feel it is a matter close to me. Especially since, I am in an industry that, perhaps doesn’t actually play a part in the execution, but may be in the right context to affect some, if only a slight, but nonetheless a change. A change in seeing Shark Fin Soup kept off dinner tables.

And we shall begin this by speaking to Jaki – an animal lover, advocate of shark-fin friendly soup, petitioner against whale sharks at the Integrated Resorts, creator of Sharkman – writer behind lovesharks.sg and a schoolmate of mine at Swinburne.

PS: Do stay till Part 2 of this piece for my bit on how I would like to affect you to change.

Q: What got you interested in preserving marine life?
Jaki: I’ve always been fascinated by the sea and growing up in Singapore meant lots of access to marine life – dead or alive – from a very young age. But it wasn’t until I learnt to dive that I truly made the connection that the fish on my dinner plate was actually physically removed from the sea and that my everyday actions really did affect the big blue ocean out there. When I realised that the world’s oceans are degenerating at an alarming rate, I felt the urgent need to act in order to preserve marine life.

Q: What called you to advocate for sharks in particular?
Jaki: I watched Sharkwater, a documentary about how sharks populations are being destroyed worldwide for their fins and by destructive fishing practices such as longlining. This came as a horrible shock for me. I was aware of the issues involved in shark finning but I was not aware of the extent that certain shark populations were affected (some populations have fallen up to 95% over the last 20 years).

As a diver, sharks are like the Holy Grail. I dream of going to Malapascua to see thresher sharks or to Costa Rica to see hammerhead sharks. The idea that these amazing creatures have survived 4 major extinctions but they may not survive our lifetime is very distressing.

Sharks are a keystone species in the marine ecosystem. This means that they are essential to maintain the balance of how everything works. Removal of sharks can lead to the troppling of the entire marine ecosystem! Even if you didn’t care much for sharks, you would have to give some thought to that.

Q: Tell us about why you started [lovesharks.sg].
Jaki: I wanted to spread the word about loving sharks! Many people have this idea that sharks are evil blood-thirsty murderers and are not worth saving as a species. If you look at the facts, more people die from falling coconuts than shark bites; yet people kill a 100 million sharks a year. Even Peter Benchley, the author of Jaws was an active shark conservationist. I think it’s very important to spread the right idea of sharks around. Until people learn to love sharks they won’t see the importance of conserving them.

I also think the harmful effects of eating shark fin isn’t talked about enough in Singaporean media. Sharks are so full of mercury that there are actually warnings issued against pregnant women and children eating it. The ironic thing is people are “treating” their loved ones to this toxic “delicacy”!

Q: And how did you go about starting [lovesharks.sg]?
Jaki: Oh I just registered a blog and off I went! I thought about getting funding from various organisations but actually it’s not very necessary. These days all you need is the Internet, and the relevant information is also widely available and free. When lovesharks.sg first started it got very encouraging responses from various groups and individuals. We even got some local bloggers to try out a vegetarian shark fin dinner for Chinese New Year and they were very supportive of our cause as well.

Q: Apart from campaigning against shark fin soup consumption, lovesharks has also been involved in the petition Against Whale Shark Captivity at the upcoming Integrated Resorts. While zoos and aquariums have a part in conservation and educating the public on animals and marine life, why would having whale sharks in an aquarium be a bad thing?
Jaki: Whale sharks have an incredible natural range – they migrate over 13000 kilometres in the wild and dive to depths of nearly a kilometre. They can also grow as big as two buses. On the animal welfare angle having such a creature in a tank is extremely cruel. It’s like being locked in your room, forever!

And because of this vast difference in natural and captive environments, whale sharks in aquariums cannot behave as they would in the wild, so there cannot be any merit in any scientific research conducted on this captive population.

On top of that, whale sharks in aquariums have a very bad survival record. In the Churaumi aquarium in Okinawa, Japan, 16 whale sharks captured between 1980 to 1998 died, some surviving as little as three days in captivity. In the Georgia aquarium USA, two whale sharks died within five months of each other in 2007. On a conservation angle this mortality rate cannot be justified.

The protection and research of large migratory species such as whale sharks must be done in their natural environment. Their wild populations are already vulnerable and should not be exploited by being placed in “marine circuses”.

Q: And how has the response been to the campaign?
Jaki: Response to the petition has been really good. The site had over 2000 signatures in the first fortnight of launching and I’ve still got to manually enter stacks of signed paper petitions. Hope we break the 10,000 mark soon!

The thing that struck me most was that most people didn’t even know that Resorts World at Sentosa was planning to capture whale sharks from the wild and are very outraged when they find out. This reaffirms that we are doing the right thing because we are providing a voice of reason that needs to be heard.

I mean, the facts are very clear and for anyone who has even seen a Youtube video of a whale shark in the wild will know that having such a creature in an aquarium is a bad idea.

Q: How can the everyday Singaporean help the cause?
Jaki: Stop eating shark fin! There’s really no simplier way than that. Don’t have shark fin at your wedding. Tell your friends not to have shark fin at their wedding. A friend of mine had top grade birds’ nest at her wedding as the substitute luxury dish and everybody loved it. It’s really just a matter of changing your mindset to look to the future and focus on what REALLY matters. I think when you look at it that way, a bowl of soup is no substitute for a sustainable future for the generations to come.

Once the demand for shark fin stops, the trade and destruction will too. Don’t buy, and the sharks won’t die. Sign the i ♥ sharks pledge at www.sharkfinpledge.com and tell all your friends!

For more shark loving articles check out Sharkman’s blog at:
www.lovesharks.sg

Pledge your stand against the shark hunting industry at:
www.sharkfinpledge.com

To advocate against whale sharks in captivity at the upcoming Singapore Integrated Resort, make a pledge at:
http://www.whalesharkpetition.com

Please help spread the word via all your social media links – twitter, facebook, digg…