Petition to stop open season hunting of great white sharks

By Lynn Hamilton

Sharks have been on the planet for hundreds of thousands of years. They're a vital part of the ecosystem and deserve to coexist alongside us. While it's true that we must be careful of shark attacks, that is no excuse to hunt them to extinction.

Tell Australia: don't open hunting season on the few great whites left.

Western Australia is proposing an open season on Australia's few remaining great white sharks -- despite the failure of a recent hunt to turn up any white sharks four to five meters in length. 

Putting the interests of tourists and jet skiers over those of wildlife, Fisheries Minister Norman Moore has agreed to negate the great white shark's protected status if the federal government follows suit. This would allow shark hunters to slaughter the animals indiscriminately.

This comes at a time when worldwide, tens of millions of sharks have been hunted and killed just to make shark soup. Meanwhile, the majority of the rare shark attacks have occurred when swimmers and fishermen ignore clear warning signs. 

Tell Australia to share the surf and protect the white shark.