Saving the Shark

August 17, 2012 by John Coggin

The past few weeks have been critical for sharks as American cultural icons. While these lions and tigers of the sea are in the public spotlight, it’s an opportunity to call for their global conservation. It’s also time to appreciate the role of the 1975 Steven Spielberg film Jaws in promoting and preserving the shark, as well as demonizing it.

Jaws enthusiasts have seen a spate of recent activity. Richard Zanuck, one of the film’s two producers, passed away on July 13. Between August 9th and 12th, JawsFest arrived in Martha’s Vineyard to celebrate the film’s legacy. On August 14, Universal Studios released a new, digitally remastered version of Jaws on Blu-Ray, complete with new bonus features.  Media coverage of this “month of the shark” has focused on fear—on prolonging the man-eater mythology that, for many, saw its heyday in Jaws. Although an average of only 65 people worldwide are injured by sharks each year, fear sells.

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Eritrea’s Regional Relations

August 17, 2012 by David H. Shinn

AMISOM soldier looks out over an IDP camp. Photo by Laura Heaton/Enough Project

The UN Security Council in December 2009 imposed an arms embargo, severe travel restrictions, and an asset freeze on Eritrean political and military leaders because of Eritrea’s support for extremist groups in Somalia. This step helped solidify the growing political isolation of Eritrea.

African Union

Eritrea has long considered the African Union as a tool of Ethiopia and treated it accordingly. Following the outbreak of war between Ethiopia and Eritrea in 1998 and the closure of the Eritrean embassy in Addis Ababa, Eritrea no longer had a representative to interact routinely with the African Union in Addis Ababa. Girma Asmerom was the last Eritrean ambassador to Ethiopia and the African Union; he left in 1998.

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