New hunting, trapping curbs planned

The government yesterday announced that it intended to prohibit the trapping of finches in spring and shorten the season for hunting from sea craft by a month.

Proposals to amend the hunting and trapping regulations will be published in a government notice today, following a Cabinet decision, Rural Affairs Minister George Pullicino said yesterday.

Under the proposals, finch trapping, currently allowed between October 1 and April 10, would be restricted to between October and the end of January.

Trappers, who number around 5,000, are currently allowed to trap seven species of finch as well as turtle dove and quail. Although the trapping of turtle dove and quail would still be allowed, the proposal would translate into a sharp reduction in trapping activity in spring.

The same restriction had come into force in 1993 only to be withdrawn by a Labour government in 1996.

The hunting season from sea craft currently opens on October 1 and ends at the end of February. Under the proposal it would end on January 31, preventing hunters from continuing to shoot at the large numbers of ducks that pass over Maltese waters on their way to breeding grounds in the north.

The new rule would spare more than ducks however: Several sea-faring hunters have been convicted of shooting at protected birds and reports come in every year about this sort of activity.

Mr Pullicino said both these changes will take place because the EU Birds Directive does not allow hunting at sea during spring of birds migrating towards countries where they breed.

"It is becoming increasingly crucial that Malta conforms to what has been negotiated with regard to hunting and trapping in the Maltese islands. If Malta is to honour what has been negotiated, certain amendments are needed in the hunting and trapping legislation," Mr Pullicino said.

"Following the visit of an EU delegation in Malta last April, the European Commission drew the government's attention to the need to implement measures to ensure Malta conforms to what had been negotiated. It also drew our attention to the differences in the interpretation of certain regulations."

The European Commission, he said, had received a considerable number of protests from individuals and local and foreign voluntary organisations in connection with hunting and trapping.

It was also aware of the regular articles in the press that paint a worrying picture of the hunting and trapping situation in Malta. At the same time, members of the European Parliament were putting increasing pressure on the Commission to take action and ensure that Malta conformed to the EU Birds Directive.

The Commission had to face these allegations and show that it was taking action to ensure that Malta, as an EU member state, was abiding to its Accession Treaty, said Mr Pullicino. He reminded hunters that they were the only ones who were allowed to hunt in spring and this had raised a lot of questions within the EU.

"They must realise that each time they break the law, they are effectively shooting law-abiding hunters in the foot."

Another proposal specifies the maximum speed limit a sea craft used for hunting may reach. It sets the limit at 18 km per hour, to bring Malta into line with the EU directive.

Mr Pullicino said the government intended to continue to apply the derogation to enable hunters to shoot turtle doves and quail in spring.

"It is important one understands that unless Malta conforms to what has been negotiated during the accession negotiations, there is a possibility that what we negotiated will be lost. Malta is the only country in the EU to allow the taking of turtle doves and quail in spring and this already caused much controversy with the EU during negotiations.

"Malta has to take measures to ensure that it conforms to what was negotiated. Ultimately, the scope of the Birds Directive is not to ban hunting but to ensure that hunting takes place in a sustainable manner and does not endanger species of wild birds that are under threat."

Interested parties and individuals have been invited to comment on the proposals. Suggestions are to reach the government over the next four weeks and should be addressed to the Permanent Secretary at the Ministry for Rural Affairs and the Environment, Barriera Wharf, Valletta.

BirdLife Malta last night said the proposed changes were an "important positive step" to transpose the provisions of the Birds Directive.

"While we acknowledge that the decision was a difficult one for the government, we also note it is an inevitable start in the process of conforming to EU community law on bird conservation, which process should have been completed by the date of accession to the European Union on May 1, 2004," the NGO said.

However, it pointed out that illegal hunting had not yet been addressed and called on the government to embark on an effective strategy to stop the activity, "which should include assigning more personnel to enforcement of the bird protection laws".