UAE and 8 other Arab Countries Jump Onboard to Protect Sharks
Last month, the UAE, Comoros, Egypt, Jordan, Libya,
Mauritania, Sudan, Syria and Yemen became the first Arab nations to sign a
Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) pledging to improve the protection of
migratory sharks. The MoU was signed by these nine nations February 17
th,
preceding the signing by 27 other nations, supports the development of a plan
to protect migratory sharks as well as a plan to potentially add more sharks on
the protected species list. These nations pledged to conserve seven different
migratory species of sharks, including the Great White Shark, the Porbeagle,
and the Whale Shark.
Many shark species are greatly threatened by unsustainable
fishing practices, with shark finning being at the pinnacle of these
destructive procedures. Shark fins are vastly popular in China and the Far East
for the use in soup as well as traditional medicines. With the price of a
single bowl of shark fin soup costing as much as $100 US, fisherman are willing
to go to extreme lengths in order to acquire as many fins as possible. In order
to obtain shark fins in the most efficient manner, poachers will cut the fins
off of a living shark and throw the finless body back into the water to die a
slow and agonizing death. This brutal and barbaric practice is not only
inhumane, but it is decimating populations of sharks worldwide. The UN
estimates that 70 million sharks are killed each year merely to supply the
shark fin appetite.
Many countries, including the UAE, have made the practice of
shark finning illegal, as they require the shark to be landed at port with all
of its fins still attached. This is a good first step, however, it is still not
enough.
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Great White Shark. Photo Credit: Jim Argonick/Shutterstock |
Another enormous threat facing sharks is bycatch, which is
the unintentional catching of non-target species. Even though fishermen are not
necessarily targeting the shark meat, sharks still end up in their nets. Many
fishermen view the numbers as negligible; however, evidence shows that by-catch
is adding to the ever-growing pressure exerted on shark species.
Authorities are creating a framework to further enhance the
protection of sharks through implementing protection measures aimed at
migratory species. The importance of protecting migratory species lies in the
fact that these sharks travel from country to country, crossing borders where
they become otherwise unprotected by law. Therefore, there needs to be regional
cooperation in order to protect the existence of these animals. The support and
signing of the MoU is a major contribution to this effort.
In an effort to protect general shark populations, including
migratory sharks, possible measures to be taken are the modification of shark
fishing quotas, restrictions on harmful fishing equipment, and fishing area and
season restrictions.
Although the MoU is not legally binding, conservationists
believe that there will be an incredible positive impact on threatened shark
species and global awareness. Nine Arab countries signing the MoU is a
monumental event that will only create more awareness throughout the region,
hopefully to influence surrounding nations to jump on board.

Raising awareness on a global level is of utmost importance
and must be continued through community outreach, petitions, and legislation.
Sea Save Foundation's campaign, “Give Em the Fin”, is achieving this by reaching out to
people locally, nationally, and internationally to raise awareness about the
destructive practices carried out on sharks. The goal of the project is to collect
20,000 photographs of people from around the world giving the universal sign of
the shark. These photos will be added to a mosaic printed on billboards to
represent the international support for shark protection.
Get involved! Go to Sea Save's
Give Em' Fin Mosiac Upload and in just a few minutes you can add your image to our mosaic. Then share on Facebook and help build momentum. "Be Part of the Global Picture. Say "NO" to Shark Fin Soup!"
Written by Paige Henderson