OUGD403- Brief 4: Story Chosen (Shark Finning)

My story of choice after much deliberation and a wide range of choices I have finally chosen the storyline about "shark finning", this is due to my already existing passion for animal welfare and conservation. This story I extracted from "i" newspaper which is a condensed version of the Independent, this story appeared within the international section of the paper identified as "china". As "i" newspaper contains content from the original independent it therefore contains the same origins of the same political background.

"Political allegiance: Takes a centre-left stance, but does not traditionally associate with any one party, hence its name. If it does take a view in 2010 it is probably more likely to back the Lib Dems - or even a hung Parliament - than support Labour or the Tories."

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/8282189.stm


Quotes extracted from the Independent newspaper:

"It is a myth that people in Asia don't care about wildlife. Consumption is based on ignorance"

"Consumption of shark fin, the key ingredient in the pricey and extravagant banquet staple shark-fin soup, has dropped by 70 per cent since the end of last year, according to Ministry of Commerce data."

This could be due to the raise of awareness internationally about shark finning and what actually happens, far from the luxury and "extravagant" way it is viewed in meals. 

"More than 95 per cent of the annual harvest of shark fin worldwide is consumed in China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.

Wang Xue, a member of a Beijing-based environmental NGO which runs the China Zero Shark Fin project, told the China Daily that her organisation was witnessing a general downturn in demand for shark fin."

“Less demand will lead to less poaching,” Ms Wang said. “We wish to see the declining demand last a long time, instead of being a short-term response to government policy. It needs a transformation of ideas in people’s minds.”

"Aside from the sheer numbers being caught, sharks are often “finned” –  meaning they are caught, their fins are cut off and they are returned to the ocean alive, where they will inevitably die, a practice that has angered animal rights activists for many years."

The photograph on the Independent states: "The roof of a Hong Kong factory building is covered in drying shark fins. Consumption has fallen faster in China than in Hong Kong, suggesting the anti-graft campaign is having an effect."

"The party leadership launched a campaign in December, vowing to target extravagance and waste, and demanding austerity from cadres and military officials as a means of curbing graft."

The story therefore explains that the reduction in shark finning is largely due to the lack of demand along with conservation projects run by charities. The lower demand by the higher classes has resulted in less poaching of sharks, charities are wanting these numbers to further decline from the 50/70% decrease.