HKU Bulletin November 2005 (Vol. 7 No. 1)

9 T he University has become the first educational institution in Hong Kong to ban the consumption of shark’s fin soup from all its official functions. The groundbreaking decision was made at a meeting of the Safety, Health and Environment Committee in September. The new policy follows a proposal, forwarded by Professor Brian Darvell, to consider banning the soup from official functions. The Committee, however, went further and included a clause to ensure that the University does not fund any part of any meal at either internal or external functions at which shark’s fin soup is served. Darvell, of the Faculty of Dentistry welcomed the news and said: “I am delighted. The Vice-Chancellor had told me some time ago that he personally supported such a move, and it is good to see that this has been translated into official policy. “It remains for the Faculties to make a similar declaration in respect of the monies they have that are not obtained from the University centrally and which may be used for what are termed ‘unofficial’ functions. “I also look forward to this statement being followed by similar decisions by the other tertiary institutions.” And he added: “Every such small step is to be welcomed as an intelligent contribution towards the solution of a global problem. Courage, commitment and rationality; the example set is to be warmly applauded.” The Registrar, Mr Henry Wai, explained that the University has long been committed to sustainability. “And the decision we have taken demonstrates our resolve to contribute to help to protect biological diversity in accordance with this commitment. “As the senior tertiary educational institution in Hong Kong, we should set a good example. We hope not only to encourage our own students, staff and alumni to eschew shark’s fin dishes at all times, but also to give a lead which others in Hong Kong will follow,” he added. Mounting evidence shows that sharks, which have prowled the oceans for 400 million years, are now being slaughtered at an unprecedented rate. A staggering 100 million sharks are butchered annually. Estimates from test sample areas and mathematical models by the US National Marine Fishery Service suggest that five species of shark, including the great white and hammerhead, are now nearing extinction. Since the 1980s sharks have been the victims of a global gold rush. As China has grown richer and its wealthier citizens have been able to afford luxuries that were once off the menu, the US National Marine Fisheries Service has encouraged fishermen to enter the shark fishing industry. The Service has referred to sharks as an ‘underutilized resource’ and have freely handed out the name cards of shark’s fin dealers. The resul t ing effect on shark populat ions has been devastating. Leading shark expert Sarah Fowler told Britain’s Independent newspaper, earlier this year, that ‘if you take a population and half it, it can take 270 years to bounce back. We won’t see the recovery of some of them in our lifetime.’ As prehistoric predators at the top of the marine food chain sharks have no natural enemies in their own environment. This means that their rate of reproduction is slow. It can take up to 15 years for a shark to reach sexual maturity and even then the female will reproduce just one or two pups a year after a long gestation period of 22 months. But a shark’s fin can net a fisherman HK$200 a pound. Globally, the industry earns US$240 million for suppliers a year. The exorbitant price of shark’s fin has ensured that the trade is vehemently defended by the catering sector. And despite bans by Hong Kong Disneyland – which bowed to international pressure this summer to not serve shark’s fin soup in its restaurants – and boycotts by Cathay Pacific Airlines and Mastercard, Hong Kong remains at the centre of the trade. According to the US-based Wildlife Conservation Society, Hong Kong handles up to 85 per cent of the world’s shark fin imports. This city alone consumes an estimated three million kilos of shark annually. The movie, Jaws , a terrifying thriller featuring a cool and calculating killer in the guise of a great white shark, gained instant cult status when it was first released three decades ago. But as the first film to gross over $100 million it did more than break box-office records. It also caused a wave of shark hysteria that has hardly abated in the 30 years since. It also did more to devastate the creature’s image than any number of shark attacks could have. Stephen Spielberg’s classic drove to the centre of man’s primal fear of the unrelenting predator and unwittingly instilled a universal terror of sharks. Today that terror has transformed almost every breed of the elusive creature into the evil rogue of the oceans. But despite the persistence of the man-hungry myth sharks killed seven people worldwide, last year, the year before they killed four and three in 2002. Some of those deaths prompted revenge hunts. But even Peter Benchley, author of the book that inspired the Jaws movie, has since voiced his regret at the damage caused by the myth of the blood-thirsty voracious man-killer and has become a shark activist. In 2002 he released a new book, Shark Trouble , to educate the public about this mysterious creature. It is hoped that the University’s stand will go some way towards educating others to follow suit and encourage other institutions to consider implementing a similar policy. 8 COVER STORY Shark’s Fin Ban