Those of you who follow the comments on these pages will have seen a sharp exchange a week or so back with a man from Florida. He picked up on a piece I'd written about the Ali-IPO and railed against their active involvement and promotion of the slaughtering of sharks for their fins. As a man devoted to spending time on the sea (see my other, rather occasional blog here if you're interested), I have more than a little sympathy to their cause. I did, however, take the commenter to task for over-stating his case.
It seems that this is not an isolated incident and that the ZD-Net piece on the campaign linking Alibaba with shark slaughter is the 2nd I've seen this week. It goes something like this:
That has turned [Patric] Douglas and other divers into activists. Since starting last year, they have sent petitions with thousands of signatures to Alibaba demanding that Founder, Chairman, and Chief Executive Officer Jack Ma crack down on the shark fin merchants using its site.Alibaba, which has more than 180 companies engaged in buying or selling shark fins, is "the New York Stock Exchange of shark fins," says Douglas. Adds Wolfgang Leander, a 66-year-old diver and director of shark preservation at the Ocean Realm Society, a lobbying group based in Florida's New Smyrna Beach, "They are offering the shark fin traders a very convenient platform to do business."
Leander was the commenter in question on this blog. I have no issue with his statement here which is perfectly reasonable.
It will be interesting to see what Alibaba does in reaction to this campaign. When Disneyland was being developed in Hong Kong, the entertainment giant came under attack for its plans to serve sharks fin soup and traditional wedding banquets in its hotels. Following a high profile campaign led by, amongst others, some kids from my boys' school, Disney relented and Jaws came off the menu.
I can't think to many ways in which Jack Ma resembles then Disney CEO Michael Eisner, but he may be fighting the same fight here. Don't bank on the activists to back down as the IPO nears.
5 comments:
Dear Mr. Woodward:
So, you really think you 'took me to task', huh? I just sent you a friendly e-mail, and you brushed it off telling me not not to bother people I "even" don't know sending them rubbish.
Well, now let me give you some advice you definitely seem to need, Mr. Woodward: Before lecturing, perhaps you should do a little home work to make sure that you have a point. In my case you had none.
Best regards,
Wolfgang Leander / Bolivia
Please see my comment today back on the original post. It's certainly not my intention to be rude.
Is this issue raising as much attention in the places where you're all raising it?
Peace, Paul....
The issue is certainly gaining momentum, and I am almost certain that Alibaba will eventually yield and give up the shark fin brokerage business. What we at the Ocean Realm Society, of which I am the director of Shark Conservation, and our friend Dr. Brian Darvell, really want is to convert Alibaba into a champion for the cause (stop the demand for shark fin soup) - which, admittedly, might a far fetched wish. It could, on the other hand give Jack Ma's Alibaba a much needed PR boost considering their ambitious expansion plans.
Wolfgang
Greetings Paul -
Please do not assume the online volleys are an attack on you personally. Yes, you and others have misquoted from some of the information you have seen - understandable when the facts are not obtained by one-on-one investigations.
Are you a diver? A lover of the ocean, or even simply understand how the balance of our planet "earth" functions.
I dare say that if you were conscience of any of these the issues you would already be in our camp - most likely at the lead considering your Hong Kong location.
Then again, are you only concerned that big business China may react in - lets say - an unacceptable manner using pressure or even force on those that oppose the big business - and their government relationships?
It is not our goal to "tear down" Alibaba.com or Yahoo China - but to help them understand that allowing any percentage of illegal activities - even if only 10% - is enough to tear down the market place that allows for such exchanges.
Those who trade in "legal" shark activities will find another method for trading - as they did before Alibab.com - and the bad guys will continue to find loop holes, only they would not have Alibaba.com to fuel the problem.
Rest assured that you, China and the world have not heard the last of this as we are concerned, committed, connected and crazy enough to continue the pressure in every which way possible.
Thanks for trying to understand.
Richard Stewart
Executive Director
Ocean Realm Society
I really appreciate your efforts in highlighting this issue...... See while millions more sharks swim about totally ignoring all that and simply looking for their next meal, whether human, shark bodies thrown overboard without fins, or whatever.
And FYI, it's the Japanese that enjoy shark fin soup. Chinese eat rice, lots and lots of rice, or if they live in cities, occasionally Kentucky Fried Chicken or McDonald's, with rice on the side.
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