Oman's Shame!

As a scuba-diver and someone who likes to see marine life in its natural habitat, I have always been saddened by the piles of little sharks evident in fish markets and on fish counters at Lulu supermarkets across the country.  Some of these small sharks might be a diminutive species, but I suspect many are simply babies - whipped out of the ocean at a tender age and denied the chance to grow and reproduce.  It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out the grave consequences of that.  Where will the next generation of sharks come from?


Everyday I see more and more disturbing evidence of unregulated and unsustainable fishing practices and I am becoming increasingly angry.  Why is nothing being done??


Oman is currently basking in the glory of having Muscat voted one of Lonely Planet's top 10 cities to visit as well as Arab Tourism Capital 2012.  I wonder what tourists would make of what is going on? Oman undoubtedly has much to offer foreign visitors, but for how long? Just like it's oil wont last forever, it's ocean bounty wont either.  Once Oman has finished pillaging the sea and building monstrosities on every last unspoilt coastline, what will be left? An opera house and some shopping malls?! Oman's point of difference from it's GCC neighbours lies in its natural beauty, its ruggedness, its lack of in-your-face commercialism.  Much of Oman is still like travelling back in time. This is the beauty of the country and what makes it so unique and appealing.  It is incredibly distressing that short-term thinking is likely to be responsible for the destruction of all that for future generations.  And let me be clear - this isn't just about tourism (an industry Oman will become increasingly reliant on). It's about Omani children, and their children's children.  In the words of an Italian friend commenting on a shocking photo on Facebook: "Dear Omanis you are breaking the chain of the natural balance and tomorrow your children will eat the sand....."   The picture which inspired this response was this:

Yes, that entire truck is full of tiny (baby?) sharks.  Here's another one:

We can't go on like this! Sharks are absolutely essential for a healthy reef and, without them, a decline in the numbers of other fish is bound to follow.  This is a fact which few seem to understand.  More predators actually results in greater diversity.  Sharks play a vital role in the health of ocean ecosystems.  The pictures above show hundreds of dead sharks - and this is just one catch on one day. How many are being caught every other day by different people in different places? These particular photos were taken in Dhofar.  Such an abundance of juveniles could suggest that the region is an area for shark breeding.  These creatures need protection!!!


Policing fishing isn't an easy task - even where regulations exist.  The government needs to work on this as a matter of urgency.  There is no doubt that the relevant Ministries are aware of what's going on, so why aren't they doing anything about it? At this rate, by the time they get their act together it will be too late!  It is such a contradiction that whilst the Ministry of Tourism proudly fills its web pages with beautiful underwater shots to entice snorkellers & divers, elsewhere those very creatures are being hauled out of the ocean to make a quick buck.  It doesn't add up!


At the same time, companies like Lulu are complicit in supporting the shark-fishing industry by continuing to stock shark products.  At a time when companies are under increasing pressure to conduct business in a socially responsible way, a supermarket of this stature should know better.  I often see sharks like those in the images above sitting on the fish counter for under a rial per kilo.  They're cheap! In the ocean they are worth so, so much more. You can't place a value on it.  So whilst seeing sharks in Lulu is sadly unsurprising to me, I was nonetheless shocked by the following image which depicts not just any shark, but a baby HAMMERHEAD SHARK! 

I don't know what particular type of hammerhead this is, but many hammerheads are endangered.  I urge you to contact Lulu and request that they cease their trade in sharks.  I have heard that Carrefour (the other main player in Oman) have already done so, but have been unable to get confirmation of this thus far.  I have written to them requesting clarification and will report back when I receive a reply.  I would also suggest that you contact EMKE who are the Abu-Dhabi based parent company operating Lulu.  I plan to draft a template letter to Lulu which I will post on here for those of you who wish to use it.


Sometimes there is so much frustration and heart-break in trying to campaign against these practices that you wonder if the uphill struggle is worth it.  It is! It has to be! If only to never have to see another picture like this:

For those who don't know, this is not a typical shark, but a whale shark - a magnificent, majestic, completely harmless, plankton-eating creature.  Here you see one being caught recently by fishermen in Oman. This is a shocking image that brings shame on the Sultanate.  Whale sharks are listed as vulnerable by the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).  Aside from their conservation status, they are also worth a hell of a lot more alive than they are dead.  For most divers it would be a life-long dream to have the opportunity to swim with one.  Divers travel to whale shark hot-spots across the globe in the hope of seeing one.  If Oman were known as a whale-shark diving location it would bring divers from far and wide, along with the cash they would inject into dive shops, boats, hotels, restaurants and other attractions.  I had the great fortune to dive with a whale shark in Thailand and it was an incredible, life-affirming experience.  I truly hope to see one in Oman in the ocean where it belongs.


I should say at this point that it is not my intention to vilify local fishermen with this post.  Most fishermen are simply trying to earn a living and provide for their families.  No-one wants to deny them that.  The fishing community need to become part of the solution, and they need to be offered alternative income streams.  The fishermen already know the oceans, know their boats.  Their expertise could be put to other uses (e.g. running dive shops, boat tours etc.).  Regulating fishing isn't about denying anyone a job.  It is about ensuring there will still be fish to catch in generations to come.  Conservation efforts need to involve local communities if they are to be successful.


Fortunately there are others out there who feel the same way and are committed to tackling these issues.  To that end, I ask that you support both Sea Legends and Shark Watch Oman who are doing great work in this field. Please 'like' their facebook pages to stay up to date with what's going on.

Turtles Versus Tourists!

With family coming to visit Oman for the festive season I thought it would be a good opportunity to meet them in Muscat and make a trip to the Ras Al Jinz turtle reserve.  I'd heard a lot about Ras Al Jinz and their website looks very professional and says all the right things about "promoting social responsibility and sound environmental practices" and raising awareness.  Unfortunately, our experience was about as far from eco-tourism as you could get and more like a tourist cattle market.  We stayed at nearby Ras Al Hadd and made the journey to Ras Al Jinz in plenty of time for our pre-booked 9pm turtle viewing tour.  On arrival we were confronted by a foyer swarming with other tourists - there were literally hundreds of them.  We tried to book in for our tour but were simply told to wait.  We were struggling to understand how the tour was going to work. No-one seemed to be accounting for who did or didn't show up and there were just SO many people.  Anyway, we were still early, so we waited... and waited... and waited.  There was no information and no sign of movement (except the mass of bored people stretching their legs or finding a corner to sit).  Getting increasingly fed up we approached the reception desk again.  They re-iterated that they were waiting for information from the beach and that we should wait.  By 10pm, and with a young child in tow, we again tried to get some information.  By utilising our limited Arabic, the reception staff became a little more open and told us that the previous nights there had only been one turtle and that it had spent around 20 minutes on the beach.  It became increasingly obvious that there was no way all these hundreds of people would be taken down to the beach, let alone see a turtle. We eventually gave up and went back to our accommodation feeling very dissatisfied.  We saw many other people leave over the course of the evening too.

We knew it was low season for the turtles and we always acknowledged that we would have to be lucky to see any.  As with anything in nature, there are no guarantees.  Our complaint doesn't lie with not seeing turtles - our complaint lies with the shambolic handling of visitors. Even more so, our concern lies with the potential impact of this tourism on the turtles.  We always knew that late December would be a busy time to visit, but surely the centre must place some limits on how many tours they sell? The number of people waiting was overwhelming and completely at odds with the idea of unobtrusive, small-group eco-tourism.  More so, the centre missed every opportunity to raise awareness about the work they do, the plight of the turtles etc.  People left the centre having learnt nothing.  Usually on these type of trips you would expect guides to impart their knowledge, to share their passion for the subject at hand and to leave you feeling motivated to want to be a part of the conservation effort.  It may well be that Ras Al Jinz does a lot of good work, but sadly we were shown no evidence of it.  There are plans to open a visitor centre which will house some kind of exhibits, but at the time of visiting this was not yet completed.  Ras Al Jinz would do well to limit the numbers of tourists they accommodate and to ensure a fulfilling and educational visit for those who secure a place.  We expected to be guided to the beach as part of a small group and we expected to learn something, perhaps to be shown a presentation or see some pictures even if we couldn't see the real thing.  We had no interaction at all with staff regarding the turtles. We could have been waiting for anything, anywhere. Nothing made it unique or special.

I am fortunate enough to have witnessed turtles nesting elsewhere in the world and the experience couldn't have been more different.  I visited Borneo's Selingan Island a few years ago.  There, limited numbers of visitors had the chance to stay overnight to see the turtles, and strict rules and regulations were enforced to ensure the turtles weren't disturbed. Rangers took just a handful of people at a time to where the turtles were and, during any time not spent on the beach, the work of the national park was explained in detail. Visitors also had the opportunity to visit the island's hatchery and release baby turtles into the sea.  Even if we hadn't seen the nesting turtles, it would nonetheless have been an incredible experience.  Sabah in Borneo has the oldest turtle conservation programme in the world and it seems like Oman could learn something from them.

I am almost glad that no turtles came to the beach at Ras Al Jinz whilst we were there. If they had, I can only imagine that there would have been a stampede of people.  Ras Al Jinz doesn't charge much to visit. It might be better if they increased their prices but limited access and put money back into both visitor education & awareness raising, as well as conservation.  

After our trip I sought out some online reviews of other peoples' experiences.  Whilst, in fairness, there are many positive reviews, I also came across people describing their experience as "turtle torture" and describing groups of over 50 people descending on the beach at the same time. Another review talks of adjacent beaches being polluted with oil and litter, whilst someone else mentions a crowd of over 200 visitors over Eid. The same person goes on to say that the number of people resulted in some turtles returning to the sea without laying - something one would want to avoid at all costs.

It is fantastic that Oman has created a turtle reserve and is conscious of the need to conserve this magnificent species. I simply hope that it prioritises turtle welfare over tourists, whilst also ensuring that tourists receive the enlightening educational experience they deserve.

What lies beneath...

I went diving at Ras Hamar (Donkey's Head) a few days ago. Along with a beautiful eagle ray and two large, dancing cuttlefish, I saw four guitar sharks.  This should have been a joyous occasion. Guitar sharks are rare, and it was the first time I'd ever encountered them, but instead it was heartbreaking. All four guitar sharks were DEAD - caught in fishing cages, along with other unsuspecting marine life.  The worst thing was that these cages weren't even attached to anything. Their ropes were long gone.  No-one will pull them up out of the water and they'll continue to act as marine exterminators.  Four magnificant creatures killed, for nothing.


Fishing cages seem to be becoming more & more prolific in our waters.  The last time I dived Ras Hamar, about 10 months ago, there were hardly any.  This time there were tell-tale marker buoys everywhere.  What, if anything, is being done to regulate fishing in the area?  No-one wants to deny fishermen their livelihood but there has to be a more sustainable way of doing things.  The fishermen don't dive - they don't know what's beneath them when they throw in their cages.  Not only are the reefs getting destroyed, but the fishing cages are ending up in places where the fishermen can't retrieve them because the ropes get caught up in rocky features.  No-one wins. The fishermen lose their cages and their catch, and the marine life perishes unnoticed. 


Oman needs to wake up to what it has and what it's destroying. Even if the environment in itself isn't Oman's top priority, it has to understand the economic ripple-effect of its actions.  Oman is intent on promoting itself as a tourist destination. Scuba-diving brings in big dollars (look at places like the Red Sea in Egypt).  If things continue this way Oman will lose the very attractions that tourists come for.  These marine creatures are worth a lot more alive in the sea than they are dead in a market, or rotting in a cage at the bottom of the ocean. 


Please do something to protect marine life before it's too late!!

Dead Guitar Sharks at Ras Hamar

Dead guitar sharks caught in abandoned fishing cages