The Maldivian government’s plan to reopen gulper-shark fishing from November has attracted overwhelming public opposition within the Indian Ocean nation, according to the results of a new poll.
More than three-quarters of Maldivians (77%) have rejected the decision, warning that effectively dismantling the nation’s shark sanctuary will threaten not only the endangered deepwater shark species (Centrophorus granulosus) but also compromise the atolls’ economy, food security and conservation reputation.
Divernet reported on the impending revocation of the Maldives shark-fishing ban last month. Gulper sharks grow slowly and collapse rapidly under fishing pressure, and other species able to dive deeper than 1km, such as tiger, hammerhead and thresher sharks, would also be at risk of becoming bycatch from the deepwater longlining used to target gulpers.
Used for cosmetics
These small sharks are valued for the squalene extracted from their liver oil and used as in cosmetics – even though artificial alternatives are readily available.
When targeted in the Maldives from 1982, gulper shark populations fell by 97% and the fishery had collapsed within a decade. Of the four gulper species historically targeted in the Maldives, three are IUCN Red-Listed as Endangered and one as Near Threatened.
Three-fifths of poll respondents (61%) said that they were aware of the Maldives being one of only 17 declared shark sanctuaries in the world. The status is understood to help drive a tourism industry providing US $14.4 million annually in direct revenue, with other local businesses said to benefit from a further $51.4m.
Poll respondents saw shark conservation as a shared responsibility, with local communities (28%), the national government (26%) and the tourism industry (26%) considered prime stewards, closely followed by NGOs (21%).
OnlyOne petition
The online poll was commissioned by UK-based ocean conservation charity Blue Marine Foundation in partnership with regional NGOs Maldives Resilient Reefs and Miyaru – Shark Programme. It reflects the views of 1,000 Maldivian adults in both urban and rural areas across all major atolls at the end of September.
The three bodies have also now launched an international OnlyOne petition in opposition to the proposed step, calling on the government to maintain the sanctuary in line with its international CITES commitments.
The Maldives claimed shark sanctuary status in 2010, and though longlining licenses continued to be issued, shark landings were prohibited. Last year, the government reversed a decision to grant new licences allowing sharks to be landed as bycatch – but only after more than 30,000 people had signed a petition objecting to the move.
Ripple effects
“The Maldives’ shark sanctuary is one of the country’s greatest conservation achievements, recognised worldwide,” according to Maldives Resilient Reefs executive director Shaha Hashim.. “Reopening gulper shark fishing puts our marine ecosystems, our economy and our global reputation at risk.
“The government has a critical role to play in safeguarding this legacy – the science is clear: gulper shark populations cannot withstand fishing pressure and their loss would have devastating ripple effects.”
“Legalising gulper shark fishing would erase decades of conservation progress in a single stroke and put all deep-diving sharks and rays at risk of bycatch, including many of the species at the heart of the local wildlife tourism industry,” says Ahmed ‘Ricky’ Mohamed, co-owner of Oceanic Nomad Divers and a member of Miyaru – Shark Programme.
Another petition called Save Sharks 2025 put forward by celebrity divers and recommended in the Divernet article in September has so far attracted some 2,000 signatures.
With only three weeks until the legislation comes into force, the OnlyOne petition is aiming to gather considerably more momentum, having gained the same number of signatures in its first 24 hours online. Concerned divers are invited to add their names to both.
