After reporting on the horrors of shark finning for so long, it's great to get out to the blue waters of the Pacific ocean to shoot some beauty images of live sharks, for a change.

These are silky sharks that like to hang about near industrial 'fish aggregating devices', or FADs, on the high seas of the Pacific ocean.

The fish that swim alongside them are rainbow runners.

Silkys like to swim near the surface.

I found them to be gentle, curious and strangely canine-like in their behaviour.

Swimming near a FAD is not a good place for a shark to be.

Coming to a bowl of soup at a Chinese restaurant near you soon!

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PACIFIC OCEAN SILKY SHARK PHOTOGRAPHER

Below is my un-edited guest blog that I did for Greenpeace. Its 'harmonized' version can be seen on the Greenpeace site, here.

Blogpost by Alex Hofford, photographer on board the 'MY Esperanza', Defending our Pacific ship tour 2011.

© Greenpeace / Alex Hofford Crew members of the 'Jing Lu Yuan No005' are seen hurriedly stuffing dried shark fins into bags and rushing below deck to remove them from view.

Currently I’m on assignment for Greenpeace as the photographer on board the ‘MY Esperanza’ as part of the ‘Defending the Pacific‘ tour 2011. I arrived at the ship from my adopted home, Hong Kong, about two weeks ago, expecting the worst. Having done two previous ship tours in 2006 and 2009, I knew well that things can get dirty and bloody out here in the Pacific on a Greenpeace oceans campaign. And that’s not just the politics of the fishing industry. However nothing could prepare me for what I have seen this week.

© Greenpeace / Alex Hofford A shortfin mako shark is hacked to death on board the mainland Chinese longline fishing vessel 'Jing Lu Yuan No005'.

On Monday, along with a group of activists from Greenpeace, I boarded a small Taiwanese long line fishing vessel, the ‘Ming Maan Shyang No20′ which was fishing in the international waters bordering Micronesia. The boat was ostensibly targeting tuna, but the freezer was more than 51% full of sharks. Included in the catch was an oceanic white tip shark, which, according to the United Nations (UN) International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) ‘Red List of Threatened Species’ is listed as ‘vulnerable‘. It is incredible to think that 51% of their cold storage was being used up for so-called ‘bycatch’, with even threatened species listed in their catch logs.

Worker welfare was on my mind too, as the Philippine and Indonesian crew members were keen to show me their painful calloused hands, injured by handling industrial fishing gear with little protection. They also showed me their deformed toe-nails, damaged from endless weeks of wearing gum boots sloshing with sea water inside. It’s common practice for the richer distant water fishing nations like Japan, South Korea and Taiwan to use impoverished labour from the poor countries of Asia and the the Pacific region. Their own citizens would never put up with the terrible working conditions endured by the workers that I have encountered this week from developing nations like Vietnam, Papua New Guinea, Indonesia, Philippines, and Vanuatu.

As seen through the prism of the global Occupy movement, it has been with this political dynamic in mind that I have seen how the rich fishing corporations of the distant water fishing nations represent the 1%, and how these workers earning pittance wages represent the 99%.

With that in mind I set off the next day to document a second long line fishing vessel, this time from China. It was the turn of the ‘Jin Lu Yuan No005′ to get an early morning surprise visit from Greenpeace, but this time it would be by helicopter. Upon arrival, I managed to photograph the crew hurriedly stuffing dried shark fins into bags and rushing below deck to remove them from our view. Something tells me they had a guilty conscience. Later that day I returned to the ‘Jin Lu Yuan No005′ to board it along with some Greenpeace activists. The captain denied all knowledge of our early morning encounter. Not only did he refuse to show me the bags of shark fin that he had removed from the roof earlier in the day, but he had the gall to counter that the crew had eaten it all for lunch. Incredulous, and knowing that I had encountered the brick wall that I know so well from other fisheries investigations in China, I spent the remaining time on board his vessel bearing witness to scenes of industrial brutality and butchery.

This included the demise of a mature mako shark that had probably taken thirty or so years to reach adulthood. If Greenpeace had not been present on board, it would for sure have had it’s fin sliced off. But instead the Chinese captain made it clear over the PA system of the boat to the poor crew member from the small Pacific nation of Vanuatu that he should not slice off the fins off the shark whilst we were around. Instead the worker from Vanuatu was instructed to just cut off the shark’s head, slice it’s body open to extract the guts, then chuck it into the ship freezer.

All for what? A bowl of soup in Mainland China, Hong Kong or Taiwan?

At the root cause of shark finning lies greed, consumerism and the current, somewhat creaky, economic model of global capitalism.

For many Chinese that climb out of poverty into the middle class, a shark fin dinner for friends and family is de rigeur. And let’s not forget that shark fin was traditionally a dish reserved for the 1%. Or that as the scarcity of sharks fin increases, so does its price, and ironically, its desirability. I believe that the shark fin issue has become the ‘elephant in the room’ in the wider arena of fisheries issues in the Asia Pacific region, since it has become increasingly clear that longline fishing boats are now targeting sharks as well as tuna.

Of course there is no proof. The industry is murky, catch logs can be fudged, and organized crime and corruption are never far away. But from anecdotal evidence gathered over the years by Greenpeace, it would certainly seem that sharks, not tuna are indeed the new target species. Take for example the shocking photos seen on my fellow co-author and photographer Paul Hilton’s blog, which show that the shark fin industry in Taiwan is not only alive and well, but positively thriving. Runaway seafood consumption patterns around the world, especially in Mainland China, are clearly out of control – and this is driving sharks to the brink of extinction. The other theory is that the boats are now targeting sharks as stocks of tuna have already been seriously depleted. It’s hard to say, but in all likelihood it is probably a combination of both factors.

This is why I have been trying to fuse in people’s minds the links between the current ‘Occupy’ movement of political protests that are sweeping the globe, and the environmental destruction that is going on daily in our oceans. At any given moment, somewhere in the Pacific ocean, thousands of purse seiners with highly destructive hi-tech fish aggregating devices, or FADs, are scooping out untold amounts of skipjack and yellowfin tuna to fill the daily sandwiches of the lunchtime office crowds in the West. And thousands of longline fishing vessels, operating with hundreds of thousands of miles of strong plastic lines and millions of hooks, are hunting twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year in oceans around the world so that consumers in countless restaurants in Asia can dip bite size chunks of yellowfin and bigeye tuna into wasabi and soya sauce mixes.

So who profits from this greed? Certainly not the Pacific Islanders, the 99%, most of whom are steeped in poverty despite their various governments granting fishing licenses to the distant water fishing nations of Asia. Take Papua New Guinea as an example, where the Greenpeace ship which I am aboard has just come from. Its capital Port Moresby is famous for rampant poverty, car-jackings, rape, murder, muggings and very poor healthcare. Except for the exploited fishermen who work on board the boats and in its foreign-owned tuna canneries, the vast majority of the people of Papua New Guinea are not seeing the economic benefits of a foreign fishing industry running amok in its own territorial waters.

Its obvious to me that the root causes of the current crisis in our oceans are indeed the same root causes that the Occupy movement is protesting against. From Cairo to New York, Kuwait to Hong Kong, ordinary people are waking up politically to the awareness that global capitalism, corrupt politicians, corporate greed and environmental destruction are holding them back from a better life. So it is for the protesters outside the stock exchange in London, so it is for the voiceless tunas and sharks of the world’s oceans.

But there has been some progress on the legislative side to ban the sale and possession of shark fin – especially in the United States. And even though Taiwan enacted its own shark fin law earlier this year which binds fishing companies to land the whole shark along with the fins, like on the ‘Ming Maan Shyang No20′ that I boarded on Monday, it unfortunately does not go far enough. It’s a common misconception that if the whole shark is landed and the meat of the body is consumed as food, that this is somehow OK. At the current rate of depletion, it makes no difference whether or not the whole body is used. Industrial fishing is wiping out the sharks faster than they can reproduce. Body or fin alone, the practice is unsustainable and that’s the problem. What’s needed are for the governments of Asia to be bold and enact legislation to ban the sale and possession of shark fin firmly modeled on the bold laws signed this year by the US states of Hawaii, Oregon, Washington and California.

© Greenpeace / Alex Hofford 'Sharkette' activists from Hong Kong Shark Foundation handing out flyers in Hong Kong's busy Mong Kok district.

I’ve been personally involved in shark conservation since 2006. First with the ‘Man & Shark‘ project and ongoing shark fin investigations in the region, then more recently with a newer NGO, the Hong Kong Shark Foundation. With some success for over five years now, we have been trying to stem the demand for shark fin in Hong Kong and China. It’s a tough gig, but we try to win over school kids, university students and the general public. We also target the Hong Kong and China governments, industry groups, chambers of commerce, hotels, restaurants and other NGOs to support us. With our books, our short films, indy band gigs,petitions, shark flash-mobs, shark freeze-mobs and shark plank-mobs, we try to win over the souls of Chinese everywhere. But what Greenpeace is doing in the Pacific is of equal importance, because instead of targeting demand, the presence of Greenpeace in the Western and Central Pacific ocean is critical to ensure that the supply side does not collapse. No one is out here to monitor the environmental crimes being committed on a daily basis, in the huge expanses of blue desert that is the Pacific ocean. Only Greenpeace is doing that. Of the Pacific island nations that have a patrol boat, fuel is often an issue, as are the huge distances and other logistical problems.

Scientists have pointed to a tipping point for sharks, with population numbers of some species crashing below 90% in some cases. Greenpeace is not against fishing per se, but they are campaigning for the establishment of a network of marine reserves and an end to overfishing. And that means an end to unlicensed, unregulated and illegal fishing operations in the Pacific.

Sustainability is key, for it’s a fact that shark finning and shark fisheries are unsustainable. It’s a common fear in the scientific community that if we allow the oceans to be raped and pillaged at current rates, it is conceivable that the delicate balance of the oceans could be thrown out of kilter forever. This would have potentially devastating consequences for at least 20% of humanity that live in poor coastal areas, for whom fish is their main source of protein.

It all boils down to the choice between sustainability (99%) or corporate greed (1%).

My message to the world is ‘Let’s Occupy Oceans!’

@alexhofford #occupyoceans

© Greenpeace / Alex Hofford A silky shark swims next to a fish aggregation device, or FAD, belonging to the 'Zhong Tai No2' fishing vessel from China.

ALEX HOFFORD : GREENPEACE CHINA TAIWAN HONG KONG SHARK FIN PHOTOGRAPHER

Just over two weeks ago I arrived in Port Moresby, the capital of Papua New Guinea, or, as the locals like to call it, PNG.

The city rates number 130 on an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) 2004 list of the '130 Worst Places To Live On Earth'.

OK, old data, but you get the point. Car-jackings, rape, murder, muggings, poverty, poor healthcare, Port Moresby has them all - and in abundance too.

But I rather like the place. Despite the various NGO 'security protocols' put in place to prevent me from roaming the city to get some street scenes, I did manage to squeeze out this handful of pix taken 'shot gun-style' from a car passenger window.

I was under strict curfew - completely forbidden to leave 'the compound' unaccompanied for any reason, and under any circumstances.

I didn't argue. Crime here is as bad as they say it is, and car-jackings are rife.

In fact one guy working for the World Bank got car-jacked in his shiny SUV right by the hotel I had been having dinner at the night before. He wound up dead.

Yet Port Moresby has all of that Pacific Island grittiness that I love, but just can't put into words.

The place feels like an Asian Africa, if that makes any sense. The airport was interesting too, in its own way.

Here is Air Niugini's first ever plane - a Douglas DC-3.

But I didn't come here to explore the grittiness of Port Moresby, like this Chinese restaurant shot through the dark-tinted glass of a car window.

I came here to bear witness to environmental crimes being wrought daily in the Pacific. I flew here on assignment to join the Greenpeace ship 'MY Esperanza' which is touring the Pacific as part of their 'Defending the Pacific 2011' tour.

Tribal representatives from the surrounding areas of Port Moresby were more than delighted to welcome Greenpeace to their corrupt and crime-ridden land.

Greenpeace has been sticking up for indigenous rights here for a while now.

In fact the ship had just come back from defending traditional landowners in PNG's Western Province from illegal logging.

See my friend, colleague and fellow Greenpeace photographer Paul Hilton's pix of that campaign, here. 

One Greenpeace activist told me that triad gangs from Fujian Province in China are getting stuck in, sucking the forests dry of logs and and every other living thing that moves. They are setting up logging camps in the jungle where gambling, karaoke, prostituion and the consumption of endangered species are replacing traditional ways of life. Ways of life that are in harmony with nature, not against her. According to traditional landowners and the local media, in this hidden corner of the world, Chinese logging companies, with a little help from their triad friends, are acting with impunity.

For those readers who can't strain their eyes, the 'Post Courier', ran the photo above with a caption that reads: "Chinese logging ship Fu Tian was pictured loading logs yesterday at the log pond at Drina, West Pomio LLG in East New Britain Province. It is believed the ship has made eight trips out of Papua New Guinea already, despite an order put in place by former acting Prime Minister Sam Abal to stop operating until a commission of enquiry is completed. Picture: JOHN PANGKATANA". (It is interesting to note that the 'Post Courier' is one of two national newspapers in Papua New Guinea. The other one, 'The Nation', is owned by a logging company.)

Ah, China. When will she start behaving like a grown up? So to kick things off, here's a shot of the Chinese embassy in Papua New Guinea. Unsurprising if you know me, I'll be blogging more about China's role in the Pacific later.

And whilst we are on the subject of China - well Hong Kong actually - here's a shot I took of a Hong Kong-registered vessel carrying timber as we left port.

Not content with coming to PNG to rob the country of logs, this vessel is giving the locals a taste of good old Hong Kong-style marine air pollution. If you are going to do a land grab, why not make it a dirty one? This scene would not look out of place in Kwai Chung. And here's a closer crop...

Hong Kong is my adopted home. But at time like this, I sometimes feel ashamed to say so.

More on Greenpeace's PNG illegal logging campaign here.

ALEX HOFFORD : PORT MORESBY PAPUA NEW GUINEA GREENPEACE PHOTOGRAPHER

HONG KONG - Marine conservation activists and citizens perform the world's first 'plankmob' event to promote shark protection, Mongkok, Hong Kong, China, 25 September 2011.

A 'plankmob' is a cross between this year's internet craze 'planking', and a 'flashmob'.

According to the Hong Kong Shark Foundation, 73 million sharks are killed each year for their fins alone, which are used to make the infamous luxury dish favoured by Chinese, shark fin soup.

Planking is where individuals lie face down in an unusual position or location and post the photo on the internet. A flashmob is a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual and sometimes seemingly pointless act for a brief time, then disperse.

As apex predators at the top of the food chain, sharks play a vital role in maintaining the delicate balance of our marine ecosystems.

According to the 2010 United Nations International Union of Conservation 'Red List', over one third of all shark species are already threatened, or near threatened, with extinction.

The demand for shark fin soup is largely to blame.

“According to global trade figures, Hong Kong is still shark fin central, but the tide is definitely turning as more and more Hong Kongers realise that shark fin soup comes at a price our oceans cannot afford to pay”, said HKSF's Bertha Lo.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA SHARK FIN PHOTOGRAPHER

Now I like Apple products as much as the next guy.

But what I saw today at the opening of Apple first store in Hong Kong really made me wonder about what kind of a society we are living in.

Forty years ago they might have been shouting "Long live Chairman Mao!", and waving little red books.

Seventy years ago they might have been shouting fascistic slogans.

But today there are no ideologies left, and many religions, Islam apart, are on the ropes.

So what's left?

Bland, empty consumerism, that's what.

And though that too looks pretty shaky in most markets, it's still a strong force here in Asia. Especially here at the IFC Mall in Hong Kong's Central District.

So that's why today, Apple's geeky Hong Kong staff were instructed to chant the blandest slogan of all: "Apple, IFC! Apple, IFC!, Apple, IFC!".

And it was just the staff. Their incessant yelling designed to create the illusion of mass rapture. In fact, having had very little sleep, all the customers and fans I saw looked too bleary-eyed to shriek about consumer electronics. The 'blue shirts' having been hyped up into such a frenzy by their US superiors, looked like US team-building-meets-the-Red-Guards-meets-the-Hitler-Youth, all on hallucinogens. The collective larynges of the entire staff workforce as a marketing tool. Cheap and clever indeed. In fact the opening itself was not a frenzy as some media are portraying it as. Yes, the fans lined up overnight, but the only people I saw in a shrieking frenzy were the Apple staff. Non-Apple cultists remained calm overall.

Fanboys queued right around the block, as far as the ferry piers.

They waited all along the raised walkway.

And in the finest tradtion of the 'Great Hong Kong MacDonald's Hello Kitty Doll Promotion' of 1998, some slept overnight - waiting up to 36 hours in line.

The first 5,000 suckers to make it through the doors got a free iPhone 5!

No, that's a lie. They got a free... T-shirt.

Now that's what I call capitalism and consumer culture at its best!

See the Youtube clips below to see embarrassing scenes of Apple Hong Kong staff hysteria, (and a little forced American-style 'high-fiving' and bonhomie!).

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

(HONG KONG - Thursday, 01 September 2011)  Here's a Chinese couple who have decided to take a stand against the consumption of endangered species at their wedding. Braving the dark mutterings of their parents and grandparents, Brenda & Ricky did the right thing yesterday, and banished it from their banquet altogether. Well done and congratulations for tying a shark-free knot!

(More about this happy couple will be posted soon at the Hong Kong Shark Foundation website.)

PASS

(HONG KONG - Wednesday, 31 August 2011)  But despite the best efforts of 'shark heroes' Brenda and Ricky, the trade is thriving. Here's a school of black tip reef sharks (minus their bodies), drying by the side of the street earlier this week in Hong Kong's Sheung Wan district. 

FAIL

(HONG KONG - Tuesday, 30 August 2011)  And it's not just sharks that are being wiped out. Congratulations to Hong Kong's Customs & Excise Department for intercepting this huge two ton haul of ivory on a ship arrived from Malaysia on Tuesday - 794 pieces in all. According to their spokesman, the smuggled ivory was worth US$13m and was concealed in a shipping container marked, "non-ferrous products for factory use". Well done Hong Kong Customs, keep it up!

PASS

The thing is, elephant ivory is listed on C.I.T.E.S.  If only all 440 species of shark were too. Currently, the only three shark species to be listed on C.I.T.E.S. are the great white shark, the basking shark and the whale shark. That leaves around 437 species of shark unprotected, and until they become protected under C.I.T.E.S. too, the Hong Kong Government will continue ignore this thorny issue. Imagine tons and tons of seized shark fin sitting alongside all that illegal ivory in a Customs & Excise warehouses in Hong Kong? That would be the day. But isn't it about time already...? 

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA CITES SHARK IVORY ENDANGERED SPECIES PHOTOGRAPHER

It's that time of year again.

The Japanese company Yashima Shoji Ltd is in town to promote the Mitsubishi conglomerate's huge frozen stockpile of critically endangered bluefin tuna at the Hong Kong Food Expo.

Seemingly unphased by the fact that, according to the IUCN Red List (international Union for the Conservation of Nature), their samples were akin to pieces of sliced panda, these gents seemed either too ignorant or blinded by greed to care.

And so the public gorged themselves on free samples of this utterly beguiling sashimi. Get it while stocks last. At the rate we humans are consuming it, that certainly won't be long. Some estimates say the bluefin tuna has about one year left before extinction.

"But it's so good!", one woman said. I see. So that makes it OK, does it?

Then Gary Stokes, an activist from the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society turned up. Who tipped him off? I have absolutley no idea.

A bit of a face off ensued. Security showed up. Tensions rose. A crowd gathered. Sampling stopped. Revenue streams were temporarily disrupted. A PR girl from the Hong Kong Trade Development Council became flusterred. A blockade began.

Seashepherd effectively shut the booth down for the rest of the day. No deals done, no bluefin tuna tasted.

And the pieces of endangered species were carefully removed from the display cabinet and put back in the freezer at the back of the booth. 

FINAL SCORE

Sea Shepherd Conservation Society 1-0 Japanese Marine Environment Gangsters

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA BLUEFIN TUNA PHOTOGRAPHER

Here's a photo by Reuters photographer Chris Helgren of a Sony warehouse in Enfield which was hit by the riots in London on Monday.

And here are a couple of my pictures of the Sony warehouse in Sendai, Japan, which got hit by the earthquake and tsunami back in March.

And here's a snapshot of the Sony stock price on the New York Stock Exchange since February, courtesy of Yahoo! Finance:-

This one company's destiny can be seen as an example of a wider malaise.

Natural disasters, markets in turmoil, unrest on the streets... where will all end?

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA SONY PHOTOGRAPHER

I got up early today, as I fancied a bit of Communist flavour.

These Hong Kong secondary school students are at a passing-out ceremony today for a Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) military summer camp for the city's youth.

The military summer camp was started up five years ago to instill a greater sense of Chinese national identity in Hong Kong secondary school students who notoriously feel little or no love for the motherland.

Call it indoctrination or brainwashing, whatever you like, but I didn't see a single Hello Kitty doll or GameBoy the whole time I was there.

This city is changing. And fast.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PLA PHOTOGRAPHER

Is it that kid's lives are so dull in Hong Kong that they have to resort to this?

A lot of the show is thinly-disguised soft porn.

(Male) kids queuing up to hug a Japanese porn star.

Above-mentioned porn star.

Public housing hormones in overdrive.

Pervy stuff everywhere.

Could it be that fantasy dressing up and the immersion in the culture of animation is a popular way for young people in urban Hong Kong to escape the drudgery of daily life as well as the lack of opportunities offered by a society polarized by a widening wealth gap?

Or could it just be a bit of harmless (and horny) fun?

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA ANI-COM PHOTOGRAPHER

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton came to Hong Kong this week and left in hurry.

To allay Asian markets half way though the day's trading session, she spoke a bit about the US debt ceiling crisis,. But some say the fact she spent so little time in Hong Kong speaks volumes about this city's decreasing importance in the face of China's opening up to the world.

After a quick flurry of handshakes and a luncheon speech, off she went to Shenzhen. Not even enough time for an egg tart or a tailor's sitting.

Just another Chinese city?

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA HILLARY CLINATON PHOTOGRAPHER

Had to put something else up to get that Royal Wedding stuff off the front page.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG GUILIN CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

The hype surrounding the Will & Kate Royal Wedding hasn't exactly reached fever pitch in Hong Kong. Is it just me? Or do these people look bored?

Search as I could, APM Mall in Kwun Tong was the only place in Hong Kong that was hosting any related activies in the run up to the actual 'big day' tomorrow.

All this tat was imported from the UK, and displayed at the APM mall to drive sales. Hong Kong mega-property developer Sun Hung Kei Properties, the mall owners, spent HK$150,000.00 on these souvenirs and memorabilia, some official, some not so.

The pubs and bars frequented by expats in Central already have bunting out for tomorrow, but nearly fourteen years after the handover, it seems the locals couldn't care less.

Like many Brits in the UK, I might add.

Yesterday I went to Temple Street in Jordan and the Ladies Market in Mongkok to see if I could find any dodgy Royal Wedding knock-offs from China, but nothing.

If there was one place in Hong Kong to get Will n Kate-related tat, that would've been it. I'm actually quite surprised I couldn't find any...

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

I'm in Jakarta this week, and I'm shocked by some of the income disparaties I've been seeing here. Shopping malls for the burgeoning middle classes sit next to filthy slums with open sewers. Gridlocked traffic and filthy air pollution everywhere. Economically speaking, this place feels like China fifteen years ago.

More soon, stay tuned...

ALEX HOFFORD : JAKARTA INDONESIA PHOTOGRAPHER

Karma.

A word on the lips of more than a few marine conservationists out there, right now.

I have received many messages asking me my take on the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that has devastated much of the East coast of Japan, and how they relate to the erstwhile shark-finning industry of Kesenmuma.

For the record, and I have been thinking long and hard about this, I can say that I strongly disagree. Karma, or poetic justice, has nothing to do with it.

The scale of the carnage caused by the earthquake and tsunami that I saw last week in the region of Sendai, which I have documented on this blog, was truly horrific.

Nobody, absolutely nobody, deserves to be on the receiving end of the full force of nature's wrath as seen in Japan on 11 March 2011. Never in my life, until last week, had I seen anything like that. And I hope that I will never see such a terrible tragedy in my life ever again.

So right now, my thoughts and prayers are not only with the people of Kesennuma, but with all of the people of Japan, during this very difficult time in their lives.

Gloating. Schadenfreude. Instinctual feelings for some perhaps, but on careful consideration, it is obvious that nature's destruction of Kesennuma also killed many innocent people, leaving behind many thousands of bereaved, including hundreds of unclaimed children from hilltop schools. Parents, grandparents, livelihoods, homes and countless treasured personal possessions have all been lost in the mud. Let me repeat myself. Shark fin or no shark fin, nobody deserves that. Whether one is Japanese, American, Thai, Indonesian, Chilean or Chinese, to be struck down so violently by multiple natural and man-made disasters in such quick succession is a terrible thing indeed. And for innocent survivors to be made cold, hungry and homeless in the aftermath is nothing more than diabolically unjust.

In my experience, the vast majority of Japanese are kind, fun-loving and gentle. Most Japanese have very little, if anything, to do with the shark-finning, tuna fishing, dolphin capture or whaling industries of their island nation. And even less have any opinion at all about marine conservation. It is only a tiny minority of Japanese that are molesters of fish.

Yes, it seems bizarre. But unless anyone can prove to me otherwise, the stark reality is that the terrible earthquake which resulted in the deathly tsunami was caused by nothing more than the ghastly shifting of tectonic plates. The epicentre was 81 miles off the coast of Miyagi Prefecture, in which Kesennuma is situated. Geographical proximity to the epicentre and seismological activity are the only reasons why the tsunami hit Kesennuma, not karma. To suggest otherwise is preposterous, heartless and insensitive to the survivors. 

If one thinks that what was happening to the sharks was a grave injustice, one should hate injustice, not wish hate and destruction upon those Japanese who committed that injustice.

Will the townsfolk of Kesennuma pick up the pieces and start their shark slaughtering activities all over again? I don't think so. Boats are wrecked. Oil installations are destroyed. The infrastructure is just not there any more. And times have changed. In the same way that I think that the tsunami has sounded the final death knell for the Japanese whaling industry, conservation voices are louder in Japan now than they ever have been, and so I don't think the shark finning industry will recover.

A silver lining? Maybe. Will the sharks, tuna, dolphins and whales get a breather? Probably. But at such a heartbreaking price.

I believe that to show magnanimity, ocean conservationists should offer the hand of assistance to the people of this devastated region of North East Japan to help them rebuild whatever is left of their shattered lives. And, once the grieving has passed, and the reconstruction phase is well underway, we should help the people of Kesennuma find new and sustainable sources of income, livelihoods that do not wreak havoc on the marine environment.

To re-visit the last words of my blog post of 12 July 2010... 'Isn't it time Kesen-numa City, Japan's dirty little shark secret, was shut down too?' Yes, but, not this way surely...

For those who would like to make a donation to the relief effort, please visit the Japanese Red Cross website here.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA KESENNUMA JAPAN SHARK FIN PHOTOGRAPHER

Just spent a couple of hours putting this together.

And here's a quick and dirty Youtube version.

ALEX HOFFORD : JAPAN NUCLEAR EARTHQUAKE TSUNAMI PHOTOGRAPHER

A scene from the 1954 Japanese nuclear disaster movie, 'Gojira'.

The tsunami and earthquake ravaged town of Natori, Miyagi, Japan, 14 March 2011.

Sendai Port, Miyagi, Japan, 13 March 2011.

For anyone interested in the origins of the Godzilla legend, the The New York Times has a very good piece about Japan's nuclear disaster film genre here: 'Japan's Long Nuclear Disaster Film'.

However, right now my thoughts are with the people of this troubled island...

ALEX HOFFORD : JAPAN NUCLEAR EARTHQUAKE TSUNAMI PHOTOGRAPHER

Photos from what's left of Natori City, Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan...

ALEX HOFFORD : JAPAN NUCLEAR EARTHQUAKE TSUNAMI PHOTOGRAPHER

I am currently in Japan covering the mayhem for EPA.

There is no food or gasoline here, but the main thing is that the big white flash has not happened yet.

It seems the nuclear power stations are holding up well against meltdown, even though there are loads of aftershocks.

More than during the Sichuan Earthquake back in 2008. They are even predicting another big one...

ALEX HOFFORD : JAPAN EARTHQUAKE TSUNAMI PHOTOGRAPHER

It seems like every story I cover these days is the same story. The Rise of China...

Here are some parked private jets on the tarmac at Hong Kong International Airport.  A recorder number of parked private jets, the organizers of 'Asian Aerospace Expo 2011' are keen to stress. Its a cold grey day in Hong Kong, and its day one of Asia's main airshow.

Like everything else about China, it's aviation market is playing catch up with the rest of the world. Hot on the heels of the US, the Chinese aviation market is now in the number two position.

Today I got to go in a business jet for the first time, which was cool.

This is what the interior of an Airbus A318 Elite business jet looks like.

Airbus passenger jet sales in China are already strong, so now, as a nascent millionaire class emerges, Airbus are determined to tap into this pool of newly created wealth.

Back inside the expo, the Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China (COMAC) booth was the largest. And talking of Airbus, the gossip making the rounds at the show is that the 'C919 Airliner', though still in the design stage, is nothing but a rip-off of the Airbus A320. Shanzai Airbus, love it!

Airbus executives released a report yesterday saying that they believe Asia's emerging middle classes will drive demand for new planes over the next two decades. If they are right, this would propel the region to overtake the US and Europe as the world's biggest air transport market.

Moving on from Airbus, why is this man smiling? Because he's Robert Laird, VP of South and East Asian Sales for Boeing, and he just sold five Boeing 748-8 Intercontinental jumbo jets to Air China in a deal worth US$1.54 billion. Not bad, considering recent sales of the Boeing 748-8 Intercontinental are said to be lacklustre. Boeing will start delivery of the new aircraft to China's national carrier in 2014.

With Middle East mayhem, oil prices moving northwards, and slow growth in other areas around the world, Asian sales really are proving a saviour to aircraft manufacturers.

Everyone's smiling...

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

For want of anything better to chuck up onto the front page of my blog, here's a photo of the trading floor of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Getting the picture was a bit tricky, as I had to stand on one of those wibbly wobbly thin rotating bar stools, carefully holding the camera aloft with both my arms held up straight above my head. Probably caused a safety hazard as I got immediately reprimanded by a security guard. As usual. But I said sorry, even though I was being careful.

Anyway, the reason I was there was to cover yet another facet of the nascent economic boom in these parts.

At a press conference at 5pm, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEx) announced the 2010 financial results for HKEx. And that was a healthy 7% increase in profit before taxation of 5,954m Hong Kong dollars, up from 5,542m Hong Kong dollars in 2009. Average daily turnover of stocks and derivatives on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange was also up. From Hong Kong dollars 62.3bn in 2009 to Hong Kong dollars 69.1bn in 2010. That's an 11% increase.

Some people are richer here this year, with more money to play the stock market...

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA STOCK EXCHANGE PHOTOGRAPHER

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

The office is now closed until Monday 7th February 2011.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

Chinese New Year is just around the corner. And it's quiet. Luckily so, as this week I was invited to show a selection of my work to the photojournalism students at the University of Hong Kong's Journalism and Media Studies Centre. So to that end, I sat down and made a retrospective slideshow. But it turned into a bit of a monster that comes with three advisories; the slideshow contains graphic content, it's not exactly bite-sized, and the Stockhausen audio track may not be to everyone's liking.

Yes, this epic slideshow is in effect a series of mini-slideshows stacked end-to-end. And so for the impatient among you, here are the time codes:-

00:07  The Early Years.

00:27  Hong Kong.

02:26  Infectious Diseases.

03:05  Macau.

03:29  Rich & Poor.

04:28  Pattaya, Thailand.

05:11  Papua.

05:32  Sport.

06:39  Bizarre.

07:22  China Nationalism.

07:41  China Security.

08:00  China Olympics.

08:21  China Earthquake.

08:59  China Factories.

10:41  China E-Waste.

11:08  Air Pollution.

11:24  Water Pollution.

11:51  Plastics Pollution.

12:18  Overfishing.

14:02  Shark Fin.

However my advice would be to be patient. Watch the whole thing. It's way more powerful than video. Go make yourself a cup of tea, let it buffer, come back again, click the full screen icon, adjust the Stockhausen to an ambient level, and just let your senses overload by watching it all...

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA PHOTOGRAPHER

Only one day to go. Here are a few shots from the last two days.

Doggy bag by Hong Kong designer 'Decca C'.

No idea, don't ask.

Chicken bag also. Likewise, don't ask.

A creation by Hong Kong designer 'Stuti Modi' - burlesque being all the rage. Yawn, yawn.

Creation by Hong Kong designer Gary Tsang's brand 'Plant 216'. Keep it bike, keep it eco. Yeah, right.

This, and all the rest below, by Hong Kong-based Lebanese design house,'Modessa'.

Hong Kong Fashion Week is held twice a year, and is pretty important for the Chinese manufacturers and foreign importers in China's booming garment industry.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA FASHION PHOTOGRAPHER

OK, enough of shark fin for now. On a lighter note, Hong Kong Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2011 kicked off today. And in a cynical bid to drive traffic to my blog...

(Designer: Alex Wang - China)

(Designer: Alex Wang - China)

(Designer: Keita Maruyama - Japan)

(Designer: Keita Maruyama - Japan)

(Designer: Keita Maruyama - Japan)

(Designer: Keita Maruyama - Japan)

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA FASHION PHOTOGRAPHER

Back in April last year, a British TV production company called me up. They were doing some research for a new documentary on shark finning, and wanted to pick my brains. It was to be for 'Shark Bait', an episode with TV celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay, which features as part of 'Big Fish Fight' with Jamie Oliver. (You can watch it outside the UK if you use a VPN or proxy server.)

'Shark Bait' aired last night on Channel 4 in the UK, and so today the 'Twittersphere', which is usually quiet when you do search for 'shark fin', seems like it is on fire.

Here's a screen grab to show you how crazy it is...

It seems like everyone in the UK is talking about shark fin right now, and there are even protests planned for London's Chinatown at Chinese New Year. It will be interesting to see what the global knock on effects of all this will be, especially here at ground zero - Hong Kong. I hope it won't degenerate into issues of race - as that misses the point completely.

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA SHARK FIN SOCIAL MEDIA PHOTOGRAPHER

This, spotted in Hong Kong's busy Central district during rush hour tonight...

Today, Edward Yau, Hong Kong's so-called "Secretary for the Environment", came out officially in the city's semi-autonomous Legislative Council to say that the Hong Kong Government would not change its position on the consumption of shark fin by government officials, and/or legislate against the city's thriving shark fin trade. Going headlong against a ground swell of public opinion, the government maintains the same position it has held since 2005. Once again, Edward Yau of the Environment Bureau is hiding behind the excuse of C.I.T.E.S. - an industry body, that actually enables, rather than prevents, the trade in endangered species. A bit like putting the fox in charge of the chickens, that sort of thing. Anyway, Kudos to Legislator Audrey Eu of the Civic Party who asked today's questions. She's an awesome lady, and she spoke at our press conference back in September too.

Ever quick on the draw, Diego Laje, Argentinian journalist and ex-class mate of mine at the Hong Kong University JMSC, has blogged eloquently on the depressing news here.

Presented below is the full, and somewhat adulterated, text of today's depressing LegCo exchange. My red highlights denote and [comment on] what I believe to be Yau's most dubious quotes:-

PRESS RELEASE

Overseas Public Relations Sub-division
Information Services Department

Wednesday, January 12, 2011

And in case there was any doubt as to whether the corporate sector is leading the Hong Kong Government on the issue or not, here is the (growing) list of 'good guys' in town that have signed the WWF pledge, and sworn of the dreaded shark fin...

 A nice start to 2011...

ALEX HOFFORD : HONG KONG CHINA SHARK FIN PHOTOGRAPHER