Dubai: Everybody associates Superman's diamond-shaped symbol with power and justice, but on Thursday Gulf News readers awarded this honour to the newspaper's "Free Sammy the Shark" badge.
Pandinjaroot Prajesh, an Indian expatriate, learned about "Sammy the Shark" through the Gulf News editorial campaign and was encouraged to help spread the word.
Twenty-four-year-old Prajesh said: "As I was flipping through Gulf News and saw the badge, I got excited and decided to wear it.
"My colleagues came up to me asking why I was wearing a badge, so I told them the story of Sammy and they were really touched by the idea."
Prajesh believes that word-of-mouth plays a very important role in creating awareness and the badge proved to him that it helped.
"People in my office who did not know about the issue or had not read the newspaper now know about it because of my badge," he said.
Nagoor Ahmad, 36, said Gulf News's initiative made him feel at ease because "I know something is being done about this situation and that is when I started supporting the initiative".
Ahmad wore his badge to show it off to his friends and colleagues.
All excited
He said: "People came up to me and asked me what I have on my shirt. This is when the discussion started. I have told so many people about this issue and they were excited to go to gulfnews.com and get a badge to show their support."
According to Ahmad, animals should stay free, instead of being objects of public attraction, so that they could continue their natural cycle of life.
Indian expatriate Shahul Hamed, 58, felt the badge was an innovative and effective way of spreading the word about the captured shark.
He said: "People were curious as to what it was and from the badge they were informed of the cause. I have also seen people outside my office wear the badges.
He thinks people should contact the Atlantis hotel directly to show their support in freeing Sammy.
Anne Elizabeth, a member of the World Wide Fund For Nature (WWF), agreed: "Gulf News should encourage its readers to wear it. If people saw mine, I am sure they would want to wear one, too."
Elizabeth, a Filipino expatriate, thought of the movie Free Willy when she heard of the baby whale shark in captivity.
She, along with her friends and colleagues, has started an online group for this issue. Elizabeth said: "We need to try our best to convince the hotel to free Sammy. The sea is where she belongs to and not in an aquarium."
Convincing move
Peter Tauro, a resident of Sharjah, appreciated Gulf News's effort. "I think people should wear the badge and help others become aware of the situation. I am proudly wearing it and I hope it convinces others to do the same," he said. He believed the badge had convinced him to become a part of the drive.
Tauro said: "The concerned authorities need to pay special attention to such issues. The population of sharks is decreasing and they need to let Sammy go."
Lesley Connolly, a resident of Dubai and a marine life enthusiast, said: "We vacationed in the Suwaidi Resort, in Oman, recently. There are many whale sharks in that area. I cannot understand why Sammy is being kept captive. Professional divers could monitor her behaviour in the ocean!"
Connolly also believes Sammy has become a promotional feature for the hotel. "To have a whale shark in the aquarium will attract tourists to the hotel. People around the world are now aware of the situation and I personally believe this is bad publicity," she added.
Connolly hoped online petitions and campaigns would convince the hotel to free Sammy. She added: "I think people would be willing to wear the Gulf News badge to support the cause."
