Porter Erison and Cristina Spindler are the marketing and PR-executives of Alibaba.com - this is what I wrote to them today:
Dear Porter, dear Cristina:
Toward the end of October 2006 I discovered by chance that your company is heavily engaged in the international shark fin trade. I then alerted friends and conservationist organizations such as the Shark Trust (UK), Wild Aid (US), the Shark Research Institute (US), Shark Life (South Africa), Sea Shepherd (US), Sharkproject (Germany / Austria).
Richard Stewart of the Ocean Realm Society, Professor Brian W. Darvell of the Hong Kong University, Marie Levine of the Shark Research Institute, Jupp von Kerckerinck, and myself wrote many letters to you imploring you to stop promoting the international shark fin trade. I have sent you numerous articles on the devastating environmental effects of the brutal practice of shark finning - to no avail.
You and your CEO who publicly pretends to be conservation minded, most likely acting on your expert advice, chose not to react.
You have probably forgotten that many months ago I said to you that what starts as a breeze of protest against Alibaba's involvement in the abominable, often criminal shark fin trade will soon develop into a storm of world-wide indignation. You must have then laughed at my admonition. Soon you won't be even smiling anymore...
Your shameless support of the shark fin trade is making it into the news.
Watch the ABC-News video, and invite Mr. Jack Ma to see it. Then decide what PR-strategy you should develop to face the mounting pressure on Alibaba.com
In the end you will have to realize that the only folks that will be on your side are going to be the shark fin traders - not exactly the type of business people a company that is considering going public would like to be associated with....
Here is the article on shark finning with the ABC-News video clip.
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=nation_world&id=5426215
Best regards,
Wolfgang
Dear Porter, dear Cristina:
Toward the end of October 2006 I discovered by chance that your company is heavily engaged in the international shark fin trade. I then alerted friends and conservationist organizations such as the Shark Trust (UK), Wild Aid (US), the Shark Research Institute (US), Shark Life (South Africa), Sea Shepherd (US), Sharkproject (Germany / Austria).
Richard Stewart of the Ocean Realm Society, Professor Brian W. Darvell of the Hong Kong University, Marie Levine of the Shark Research Institute, Jupp von Kerckerinck, and myself wrote many letters to you imploring you to stop promoting the international shark fin trade. I have sent you numerous articles on the devastating environmental effects of the brutal practice of shark finning - to no avail.
You and your CEO who publicly pretends to be conservation minded, most likely acting on your expert advice, chose not to react.
You have probably forgotten that many months ago I said to you that what starts as a breeze of protest against Alibaba's involvement in the abominable, often criminal shark fin trade will soon develop into a storm of world-wide indignation. You must have then laughed at my admonition. Soon you won't be even smiling anymore...
Your shameless support of the shark fin trade is making it into the news.
Watch the ABC-News video, and invite Mr. Jack Ma to see it. Then decide what PR-strategy you should develop to face the mounting pressure on Alibaba.com
In the end you will have to realize that the only folks that will be on your side are going to be the shark fin traders - not exactly the type of business people a company that is considering going public would like to be associated with....
Here is the article on shark finning with the ABC-News video clip.
http://abclocal.go.com/kabc
Best regards,
Wolfgang
4 comments:
This is excellent news...about time this is brought to light!!!
Great news. Slowly but surely the word is getting out...
Keep the pressure on these guys!! Good work. Just wondering if you have ever received any type of response from them?
No, they have not responded. Not reacting at all to the shark fin problem seems to be their new PR strategy to deal with thorny issues....
Wolfgang
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