Law is needed to protect sharks

IT was with incredulity that concerned Malaysians responded to the Agriculture and Agro-Based Industry Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Shabery Cheek’s comments that there was no necessity for a ban on shark finning in Malaysia as it is not a domestic industry, and that sharks were not caught on purpose,  "Shabery: Fine without a law on shark hunting" ( The Star, Oct 6).

This flies in the face of statistics supplied by wildlife conservation organisation, TRAFFIC, which reports that Malaysia has the eighth highest rate of shark catch in the world, with 231,212 tonnes caught from 2002 until 2011. For an “industry that doesn’t exist”, this number is alarmingly high. Moreover, sharks and shark fins are also being sold openly.