Hunting decision expected 'within days'

The decision by the European Court of Justice on whether to temporarily disallow hunting in spring will be handed down within the next few days.

Many were expecting the President of the Court, Vassilios Skouris to hand down his ruling straight after yesterday's oral hearing on the case conducted in Luxembourg, but the court has decided to take more time.

The court yesterday said a final decision on whether to uphold the European Commission request to issue interim measures banning spring hunting in Malta will be communicated to the government and the European Commission in the coming days.

Yesterday's sitting, held behind closed doors, lasted just under two hours during which the legal teams headed by Attorney General Silvio Camilleri on behalf of the government and Donatella Recchia for the Commission submitted their arguments.

The hearing was held following the presentation of written submissions from the prosecution and defence teams last week.

Contacted yesterday, Attorney General Silvio Camilleri refused to comment stating he was bound by secrecy as the court's procedures were held in camera.

Malta's team of lawyers included a Belgian lawyer specialising in the environment and in the Birds Directive.

Yesterday's hearing dealt only with the Commission's request for the court to issue temporary measures so that no spring hunting will be allowed until a decision on the original case against the government is concluded.

The original case, registered as 76/08 last February and which has not started being heard yet, is expected to take two years to be concluded.

The Commission is asking the court to declare that, by failing to meet the conditions set out in Article 9 of Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds, the Republic of Malta has failed to fulfil its obligations under Article 7 of the Directive for the hunting of quail and turtle dove during spring migration.

Since accession to EU on May 1, 2004, the Maltese authorities have exercised the right to apply the derogation in Article 9(1) of the directive for the hunting of quail and turtle dove during the spring migration period when they return to their nesting ground.

The question raised in the proceedings is whether the Maltese authorities fall within the scope of the derogation in Article 9 (1) which would permit the hunting of the species in question in spring on the basis that there is no other satisfactory solution.