Straits Times Forum 30 Jan 10;
MS LEE SHYH YAO: 'During Chinese New Year, Chinese restaurants will promote shark's fin, which distresses those concerned with marine conservation.
Asian fleets go out to sea and remove the fins from live sharks, throwing them back into the ocean to die slowly and agonisingly. Long-lining, a fishing method often employed to capture sharks, uses hundreds of thousands of baited hooks attached to each fishing line going as far as 80km out to sea. This results in unwanted 'by-catches', often entangling and killing other marine creatures such as dolphins, seals, whales and turtles. For every 10kg of fish killed, about 100kg of marine life is thrown away. Reports by the United States Food and Drug Administration show that mercury levels in sharks are among the highest among marine fish. Pregnant women and young children are strongly advised against consumption. While many Singaporeans will lament that eating shark's fin is a tradition that is hard to change, it is time to start weighing the pros and cons. Shark's fin should be banned. Stop ordering shark's fin, and stop eating it.'
