City Council approves sharks, rays protection

CEBU, Philippines — Trading of cooked or raw sharks, rays, and chimaeras will no longer be allowed in Cebu City after the City Council passed an ordinance granting protection to any species of sharks, stingrays, and other species in the marine wildlife within its jurisdiction.

Councilor Eduardo Rama said the main objective of the measure is to protect and preserve the various species found around and in the waters of Cebu.

"In accordance with state policy, there is a need for Cebu City Council to enact a legislative measure to preserve these species of marine wildlife for the future generation and to maintain the healthy and balanced ecology," reads a portion of the approved ordinance.

The measure, approved during the June 26 regular session, has yet to be signed by Mayor Tomas Osmeña.

Two days after the passage of the ordinance in the City Council, the Cebu City Department of Veterinary Medicine and Fisheries (DVMF) head Alice Utlang said a team has confiscated at least 27 kilos of stingray in Barangay Pasil.

Utlang said the 27 kilos of stingray is worth over P4,000. The stingray, she said was reportedly owned by a certain Eduardo Nepangue who came from Masbate.

Rama said there's a need to protect species of the marine wildlife like sharks, rays, chimaeras, among others since there are no similar ordinances approved by the city years ago.

In November 2016, Osmeña already issued an executive order prohibiting the fishing, taking, possessing, transporting, dealing, selling, or disposing any species of sharks, rays, and chimaeras within the territorial jurisdiction of the city.

Both the executive order and ordinance were applauded by advocates.Vince Cinches, Oceans Campaigner of Greenpeace, earlier said the order signed by the mayor means that the whole of Cebu Island now has local ordinances that seek to protect sharks since the province also has an existing ordinance.

Cinches thanked Rama for leading the effort to protect shark species. Rama, also a diver, said prohibited acts include to catch, cause to be caught, posses, wound or kill any species of sharks, rays, chimaeras or their eggs within the city.

Also, anyone is prohibited from selling, distributing, trade, import or export, purchase any species of sharks, rays, chimaeras and their offsprings, their by-products and derivatives in restaurants and markets and other similar businesses.

Penalties should not be more than one year imprisonment or a fine of not more than P5,000 including forfeiture of the by-products of the species.

The implementing office will be DVMF wherein it should create a task force to help the department in enforcing the ordinance. (FREEMAN)