Spring hunting and probable fines

"Stop Illegal Spring Hunting" campaign goes on

Today's The Sunday Times reports: "A number of Maltese personalities have joined Birdlife Malta's campaign against spring hunting and are calling on the leaders of the two main political parties to take a common stand and abolish the practice once and for all.

The message on the billboards and media campaign, launched yesterday at the Radisson SAS Hotel, St George's Bay, is clear: 'Dr Gonzi, Dr Sant, stop illegal spring hunting now'.

The personalities who will feature in this campaign are: artists Kenneth Zammit Tabona, Maurice Tanti Burlò and Celia Borg Cardona; hotelier Winston J. Zahra; magazine editor Sarah Puntan-Galea; columnist Andrew Borg Cardona (I.M. Beck); entertainer Gianni Zammit, television presenters Moira Delia, Ray Calleja and Pauline Agius; physicist Edward Mallia; percussionist Renzo Spiteri; and actor Alan Montanaro.

Birdlife expressed its appreciation for the support shown by these individuals for its campaign against spring hunting, which backs the European Commission's stand that there is no need to open the season in Malta during this period.

The Commission last month expressed its intention to request an interim measure to stop spring hunting this year should this prove necessary. Taking a cue from this, Birdlife is putting the political parties on the spot to spare Malta the embarrassment of having the case resolved in the European Court of Justice.

'The Government and the Opposition should not attempt to put the weight of the decision to stop spring hunting in Malta on the European Commission and Court of Justice, when it is undeniable that a spring hunting season in Malta is unjustified', Birdlife Malta president Joseph Mangion said.

'Furthermore, the mandate from the Maltese people is crystal clear, as past opinion polls have repeatedly shown the overwhelming majority of the Maltese are firmly against spring hunting. The Maltese continue to be vociferous on this matter and it is wonderful to see these public figures stand up for our common natural heritage', Mr Mangion said. Birdlife executive director Tolga Temuge said this campaign went beyond politics and stressed that the political parties should not be held ransom by the hunters' vote because the majority of Maltese wanted spring hunting to end.

He also felt that times had changed and he believed hunters would not base their vote on a single issue, as had been witnessed during the elections for the MEPs.

Wearing a T-shirt, with the words 'Stop Illegal Hunting' emblazoned on it, Winston J. Zahra, Island Hotels Group operations, sales and marketing director, said he was backing the campaign for two reasons.

'First, I don't think we should be told what to do, and Malta should have the courage to take its own decisions. Second, from a tourism point of view, spring hunting is harming Malta's image and politicians should take a single joint decision on this', he said. Moira Delia, a television presenter and animal lover/activist, said she wanted to be part of Birdlife's campaign because animals and birds had no voice, but the public did and they should stand up and be counted".

Of course, I need not stress that I personally only support the above campaign for the sake of the birds themselves. Any other considerations are either secondary or superfluous. The simple fact is that birds, like other animals, are sentient individuals with the right to life and liberty. The single act of denying their right to life and/or liberty is, more than an "environmental" issue, a matter of strict justice. After all, we don't oppose human genocide for the preservation of human diversity or for other anthropological purposes. We oppose genocide because genocide is a gross violation of human rights. Likewise, hunting is a gross violation of animal rights.

Who pays the fines for hunting in spring?

Meanwhile, Arnold Cassola writes in today's Malta Independent on Sunday (TMIS):

"I refer to the article 'Thoughts about AD and spring hunting' by M. Fenech (TMIS, 3 February). The article reinforces the spin being pushed by the PN and its acolytes that now that Malta has been taken to the Court of Justice on hunting in spring, the Maltese government will fight it out in court (for a year or so?) until it loses the case. Then, when the Maltese government loses, says Mr Fenech, it will simply obey the court ruling immediately and therefore not pay any fines.

What a great way of solving the issue! What the government (and Mr Fenech) are failing to state is that, after the court sentence, hunting in spring would stop; say in 2009. But it has been conveniently forgotten that Malta would have to pay hundreds of thousands, if not millions of euros, for having flouted the law between 1 May 2004 and 2009.

Moreover, does the Maltese government expect the Maltese taxpayer to pay for the hefty costs of the court case in Luxembourg? We at AD say, certainly not!

In Italy, milk producers had flouted the law for a number of years. Now it is these milk producers themselves who have to pay millions of euros in fines. The fine is so huge (millions and millions of euros) that repayment has been spread over a period of 17 years.

When the fines are issued for the malpractice of hunting in spring from 2004 till 2009, the Maltese taxpayer must not pay. The misbehaving hunters and the politicians who deluded them must fork out the fines themselves".

Perhaps, the fines should be shared by our dear Lawrence Gonzi (Prime Minister), George Pullicino (Environment Minister), Simon Busuttil and David Casa (Nationalist MEPs). After all, it would be completely their fault if any fines would be incurred.

Moreover, I would challenge these four learned gentlemen, if they are so certain that Malta will not be fined on this disgraceful hunting issue, to produce a legally binding document saying that any fines incurred for spring hunting will be completely paid out of their own pockets. But then again, since when have parliamentary politicians in Malta been accountable for their words or actions?