CTAG News Letter (Nov. 15, 2012)

Dear Friends,

A community task force named C.T.A.G. (Coalition for Transparent and Accountable Governance) has been formed in our ongoing challenge regarding the Shark Fin Ban Bylaw in City of Calgary and we need your continuous support.

Led by members of our community, CTAG is a non-partisan group designed to unite the voices in our community to challenge the Shark Fin Ban Bylaw, and our demand for proper consultation.  With help from many volunteers and community members, we have successfully convinced City Council to delay the 2^nd and 3^rd reading on the Shark Fin Ban Bylaw until January, 2013.  Thanks to advocacy from these volunteers, City Council has publicly committed to conduct more in depth consultations within the Chinese community before January, 2013.

To move forward into the next few weeks, CTAG need to raise around $50,000 to help covering the legal and consultant fees, advertising, and website costs for the ongoing challenge to the City Council for that undemocratic process of introducing the Shark Fin Ban Bylaw.  To help putting things in perspective, prior to the formation of CTAG, approximately $13,000 in legal, advertising and rental fees has been incurred and paid for by the Calgary Chinese Merchants Association and its supporters.

For more information on shark fin truth, listen to the youtube

English version
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBN5Yhgnac4&feature=plcp

Cantonese version
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uBN5Yhgnac4&feature=plcp

As a valuable member of our community, your support is vital and necessary to the success of our on-going battle on this issue.  You are welcomed to donate in any amount, or purchase tickets to our fund raising dinner to support our work.  Details as follows: 

Date: Nov 20, 2012 (Tuesday) Time: 6:00 p.m. Place: Regency Palace Restaurant, 3rd Floor, 328 Center Street, S Tickets: $60 each or $500 for a table of 10  For enquiries please call David Tam at (587) 718-0453.

Best Regards,

CTAG Committee 市政關注聯盟委員會

Why are there so many lies on sharks?

Is shark an endangered species?  We can't find any shark on the Appendix I from C.I.T.E.S.

More information regarding the 3 Appendix from C.I.T.E.S. can be found here.

Tory Alice Wong shows opposition to proposed ban while slurping shark fin soup

METRO VANCOUVER -- Member of Parliament Alice Wong was back in her hometown of Richmond on Thursday — eating a bowl of shark fin soup.

At the Jade restaurant, Wong spoke to Asian media only, as it appeared no English-speaking media were invited to the event.

According to Chinese media reports, Tory MP Wong reiterated her government’s stance that the banning of shark fin products, including the soup, is a federal responsibility — not that of municipalities.

Vancouver city council agreed last month that it will work with Richmond and Burnaby to develop a ban on the sale of shark-fin products. Port Moody, North Vancouver and Coquitlam have already imposed such a ban.

At Thursday’s event, Wong appeared to be backing Jade restaurant owner David Chung’s position that he is not breaking any laws by serving the shark fin soup and has every right to do so.
Kevin Huang, a spokesman for Shark Truth, a group that opposes the practice of shark finning, said his organization was unclear as to who Wong was representing.

“Currently, we’re trying to figure out whether Alice Wong is representing the Conservative government, in other words the federal government in her stand, or if she’s just going on her own.
“After we’re clear on that, we’ll be in a better position to make a comment. Since there was no official press statement, we’re only going off our sources and the Chinese media. From what I understand, only Chinese media were invited.”

Wong’s communication adviser Robert Lynch said a media advisory was sent out by the Vancouver office, adding he would look into why no English-speaking media appeared to have been invited to the event.

Chung, who is also head of the B.C. Asian Restaurant and Cafe Owners Association, has said in the past he doesn’t know if the soup he serves is derived from one of the many endangered shark species. And he has refused to hand over samples of his shark fins to the Vancouver Animal Defense League for DNA testing.

Chung has warned he’ll declare war on any ban.
He claimed his shark fin products are federally approved and are not derived from the cruel act of finning, whereby sharks are caught, have their fins sliced off and then dumped back into the sea to die.

Chung said it’s people’s right to eat what they want and that any such ban is “culturally insensitive.”
In his culture, serving a dish such as shark fin soup to someone is necessary to show sincerity in gratitude, he added.

Click here to read more stories from The Richmond News.

Tory Alice Wong shows opposition to proposed ban while slurping shark fin soup

高院審理禁魚翅官司 團體責違公民權 恐開惡法先例

安省最高法院昨天就有組織反對多市政府立例禁翅進行聆訊，「維權公義聯盟」的律師盧曼指出，魚翅是多倫多市政府有史以來唯一被禁的合法商品，禁煙附例也只是限制吸煙範圍，並不禁止吸食和藏有。禁魚翅違反公民權，附例的惡法先例一開，市議員可以用任何理由，禁止任何物品。

 本報記者

代表「維權公義聯盟」的Miller Thomson律師行律師盧曼（Andrew Roman），昨天在法院陳詞時表示，聯盟和華裔社區支持環保和生態平衡，也反對和譴責割鰭的殘忍行為，但將割鰭與禁魚翅混為一談是絕不合理；只有三種鯊 魚是瀕危動物。加拿大在1994年立法禁止割鰭棄鯊和捕獵受保護的鯊魚，也禁止這些產品入口。因此多倫多以及加國的所有魚翅，都是從合法及可持續發展國家 入口。

由合法國家入口

他說，聯邦移民部長康尼支持華裔社區的信件也清楚指出，加國魚翅是從合法國家入口，除非是瀕危動物或危害個人健康，否則不會禁魚翅入口。

盧 曼指出，華裔食魚翅的歷史可追溯至15世紀，魚翅是族裔食品，也是唯一被單獨挑出來被禁的食品。多市禁魚翅附例令華裔社區被抹黑為不人道對待動物的族裔。 華商會接獲過百歧視和恐嚇電郵。他在法庭上讀出部分內容，包括：「指責華裔社區貪婪；野蠻屠殺鯊魚；不識英文又不教育子女講英文的野蠻人；滾回中國等」。 甚至有恐嚇要在中餐館落毒老鼠藥和大腸桿菌。這些對華裔社區造成很大的傷害。

他說，即使從環保的角度，市議會只是根據一個電影片段就妄下結論，卻 完全忽視聯邦政府魚類專家的意見。市政附例只可以管轄地方政府權責內的事務，不能夠凌駕於聯邦或省政府之上。野生動物受所在地區的省法例監管，但魚類卻屬 聯邦政府的事務。在地理上，多倫多市與任何一個鯊魚活動的水域相距千萬里，多市附例是管得太廣泛，也是杞人憂天。他向法庭提交大多倫多地區禁魚翅的市鎮 說，多市政附例禁止藏有魚翅。換言之，如果有人攜帶魚翅罐頭，也不能夠駕車經過401高速公路或伊利沙伯皇后大道，必須擇路而行。市政府在執行上有困難， 亦是越權，因為攔截貨物是海關權責。

他說，市政府有權訂立附例但不能夠濫權。市議員不可以因為意識形態立法。以割鰭棄鯊殘忍為藉口禁魚翅，屠宰火雞或其他動物又如何？市政府也無權規管市民的飲食，市議會以關心民眾健康為理由禁魚翅，日後是否同樣可以禁漢堡包和薯條，又或市內只准賣健怡汽水。

料一個月有裁決

市政府以鯊魚肉含山埃（砷）和水銀，要維護市民健康禁魚翅。盧曼反駁說，聯邦衞生部在同一份魚類食肉指引的最新修訂中表示，劍魚的水銀含量 高，建議的每日攝取量要減半，但鯊魚和吞拿魚的建議每日攝取量維持不變。每星期食一份鯊魚排無害健康。因為權衡這些魚的營養價值和風險，不認為要禁食。

他質疑市政府立法動機，表示報告指出劍魚和吞拿魚的水銀含量比鯊魚更高，如果多市政府為市民着想，為甚麼不禁這些魚肉，只禁魚翅。

由於未有商戶或個人因為魚翅被多倫多市政府起訴，因此這場官司是屬於前瞻性。盧曼在退庭後表示，相信法官最少要一個月時間才會有裁決結果。

高院審理禁魚翅官司 團體責違公民權 恐開惡法先例

為何立法只禁食魚翅

Why Shark Fins only but not the whole Shark

Why Shark Fins only but not the whole Shark

如果市府打敗官司

如果市府打敗官司

撰文︰木然

多倫多「維權公義聯盟」終於將多倫多市政府告到安省最高法院，這場官司估計在短時間內難有結果。目前唯一可知的是市府將為立例「禁魚翅」所惹出的官司埋單，我相信這是納稅人最不願意看到的。
在周一的聆訊中，代表市府的律師聲稱多倫多是地球社區的一部分，市府禁魚翅體現社區價值；代表「維權公義聯盟」的律師則認為市府附例只可以管轄地方權責內的事務，不能凌駕於聯邦或省府之上，市議員不可以因為意識形態立法。從雙方爭論的觀點看，我覺得這是一場浪費公帑的官司。
我相信大多數多倫多市民都清楚這個事實：多倫多市政府只是一個管理城市民生的機構，它不是政黨，也不是意識形態體。市府附例的訂立應從民生角度去考慮，不應賦予它超越市府以外的價值負擔。那些高舉環保大旗的議員們光要主義，不要民生，最終惹出這場官司來。如果明日市府敗了，作為市民，我籲請高呼禁翅的議員齊齊埋單。因為市府律師早就告誡過你們訂立附例缺乏法理支持，是你們一意孤行激情環保，所以，你們應該付出激情的代價。