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NEWS > SCIENCE > SHARKS, TUNA LEFT OUT OF RARE ANIMALS CONVENTION
SHARKS, TUNA LEFT OUT OF RARE ANIMALS CONVENTION
March 23 2010
Doha, Qatar – One of the biggest differences between human beings and other animals is our ability to take care of those in need. In the animal kingdom, the weak and infirmed are largely left to die, to become dinner for predators, but in the human
realm, the opposite is true. No matter the infirmity or the inequality of individuals, their right to life and love is equal to everyone else. That ability to retain compassion for burdens is just one of the many things that makes human being great, and allowed us to become so successful.
In recent years that empathy has even extended to the brutal natural world. While humans have long cohabitated with animals, they have remained prey for the most part. Until the beginning of the twentieth century concerns about the lives and livelihoods of animals outside dogs and cats were largely moot. Commercial farming as well as increased environmental awareness has allowed us to move from 
pure survival instinct to shining our empathy towards other species. With more species now extinct than currently live on the planet, and more than a few of them gone by our hands, the industrialization of the Twentieth century was the perfect time to bring that empathy, otherwise it may have brought mass extinction on an unheralded scale. However, some animals are more important that others as evidenced by a recent gathering of rare animals that excluded a few of the ocean’s heavy hitters.
The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) is a tri-annual gathering that investigates the impact of hunting and trade on various animal species. At the most recent meeting, measures to reduce or eliminate trade on threatened species such as the porbeagle shark and bluefin Tuna were defeated despite the urging of animals rights groups. In fact, those species were not even attendance at the meeting which could help ultimately decide their fate, a fact which is drawing criticism from both sides of the controversial issue.
“This can’t be considered anything but a defeat. Many of these species are in serious threat and could quickly go extinct without protection. A combination of legal fishing and illegal poaching work together to create a toxic blend that could push these animals off the face of the planet forever,” said a spokesperson for the WWF. “The biggest problem is money. You could see that major players here, particularly Japan which had its largest delegation yet. There’s so much money to be made on the fishing of these animals that it’s hard for any group to resist them. It’s even more difficult when the species themselves seem unwilling to do anything about it themselves.”
The location of the conference, in a desert country, was also heavily criticized considering the aquatic nature of many of the most threatened and financially valuable animals being discussed.
“I mean it’s really difficult for these species to step and speak for themselves for a 
variety of reasons. Their inability to speak, their underdeveloped brain, and their lack of knowledge as to what is happening to them all contribute to those issues, but the biggest problem is their lack of representation. Just being there would make a huge difference, it would put a face on the issue and hopefully generate some sympathy,” said a Greenpeace spokesperson. “It’s obvious however that CITES wasn’t interested in hearing that. It’s obvious that they had their minds made up before coming to the conference. Otherwise they would have held the conference at a place that would have made travel by these animals easier.”
Proposals for the location of the next range from Iceland, a floating oil platform, or the lost city of Atlantis should it rise from the ocean floor.
Anna Phillips, Science Correspondent
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