TEN months after releasing a landmark report revealing the planet's top 20 shark-fishing catchers, the Pew Environment Group has expressed concern about new images and video taken in Taiwan that detail the expansive and unregulated nature of shark fishing globally.
The depictions show fins and body parts of biologically vulnerable shark species, such as scalloped hammerhead and oceanic whitetip, being readied for market.
"These images present a snapshot of the immense scale of shark-fishing operations and show the devastation resulting from the lack of science-based management of sharks," said Matt Rand, director of global shark conservation at the Pew Environment Group, in a press statement.
"Unfortunately, since there are no limits on the number of these animals that can be killed in the open ocean, this activity can continue unabated."
Sharkman Manoa Rasigatale said the trend was alarming, that's why Fiji needed to push for legislation to curb the indiscriminate killing of these ancient predators.
The report by Pew and TRAFFIC, the wildlife trade monitoring network, listed Taiwan as having the fourth-largest number of reported shark catches in the world after Indonesia, India, and Spain.