Straits Times Forum 1 Mar 11;
SEAFOOD trader Sineurope's managing director Melvin Foo is wrong when he asserts that shark's fin sold here must be landed along with the body of the shark, to prevent a practice known as live shark finning, where fishermen slice the fin off the fish and dump it back into the water ('That predatory hunger for shark's fin'; Feb 5).
The dried fins we have in Singapore are imported from a number of places, including Hong Kong, Indonesia and Taiwan, where live finning is still very much a practice. Finning is also happening in neighbouring Malaysia and Thailand, and in India.
Although the International Union for Conservation of Nature listed 17 per cent of the world's 1,044 shark species as being threatened with extinction, only three shark species are listed under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (Cites) for trade protection.
Under Singapore law, traders must own a licence and declare every consignment of fish imported, exported or transhipped for official approval. For Cites-protected species, regulated trade is allowed only for certified traders.
While Europeans consume shark meat, the amount of fins originating from such markets is only a percentage of fins that are imported into Singapore.
Singapore has no specific law to ensure that shark's fin sold here must be landed along with the shark bodies.
The issue of shark's fin does not merely pivot on the cruelty of live finning, but on marine sustainability as well, especially when we remove a slow-breeding species from the wild which is also a prime predator, acting as the pillar of support for our marine ecosystem.
Contrary to popular belief, shark's fin was never a part of Chinese tradition but started as a fad - that is, a previously fashionable dish served at functions as a show of wealth. Shark's fin originated as an emperor's dish, inaccessible to commoners, and was popularised only in the past 30 years.
In such a short span, the shark population has plunged by more than 80 per cent for some species.
Because Singapore is the world's second largest trader of fins, we can make a positive difference in shark conservation.
Jennifer Lee (Ms)
Founder, Project: FIN
