Sunday, 21st September 2008 - 21:14CET
FKNK condemns illegal hunting, reacts to call to close hunting season
The hunters' federation (FKNK) said this evening that it condemned all illegal hunting and would never stand by anyone who performed such acts, but closing the hunting season because of abuse would amount to unjustified collective punishment.
The federation was reacting to a call by the German-based committee CABS which yesterday called for the hunting season to be closed after its activists in Malta said "hundreds" of birds of prey were shot down on Saturday morning. The FKNK said no solid evidence of this had been produced.
The FKNK said thousands of birds of prey had in fact been observed on Friday evening, when no illegal hunting was reported, which birds in turn roosted in some wooded areas
"The Federation for Hunting & Conservation – Malta as always condemns all means of illegal killing of wild birds, and will never stand by anyone who performs such acts. Furthermore the FKNK repeats that it will disqualify any member who is convicted of any serious crime such as is being alleged by CABS," the federation said. "
The federation insisted, however, that collective punishment was not the way forward, especially when no solid evidence of “hundreds” of birds being illegally shot was produced.
"On the 10th of May 2007, the Malta Government imposed such a collective punishment by abruptly and unjustly closing the hunting season because it alleged that a “massacre” of birds of prey by hunters took place the day before. To date, 500 days later, not a single shred of evidence has been brought to light, nor has a single person been arraigned in court as a result of the “massacre”.
The FKNK said those "very few untouchables" who persisted in illegal doings of the sort would not stop until the protection they may enjoy, from any quarter, was lifted for good.
"For the last three consecutive years, the Malta Ornis Committee had recommended that hunting should NOT be banned during the last fortnight of September, citing as one prime reason that those few who still want to shoot birds of prey that come to roost in the evenings will do so in the early hours of the following morning. However, both last year and this September, Government seemed more inclined to accommodate CABS and let them freely roam the Maltese countryside and so closed the season on both occasions."
The FKNK said that during a meeting that its officials had last week with top police officers, the police informed FKNK that it was due to the involvement and cooperation of FKNK alone, that for a good number of years now, Buskett gardens had been rid of any illegal shooting.
Furthermore, any foreigner or local may be free to roam the Maltese countryside, even play policeman and report any illegal sightings; however the right of enforcement rested on the Police corps alone.
The federation said that out of the odd 260 reports of illegal hunting that BirdLife alleged to have received, the police to-date had only arraigned seven persons with hunting related offences, out of which only three referred to illegal hunting.
The FKNK thanked the police for their service and promised further cooperation.
It also warned that it would launch legal proceedings against two CABS activists primarily, for trespassing.
It would also sue the organisation as a whole including CABS prime motivator, David Conlin (also a Life member of both BirdLife Malta and RSPB) who, the FKNK said, has been recorded as stating that CABS next plan was to completely ban hunting and trapping activities from the Maltese islands and that they meant to do this by “keeping up the pressure (on the Maltese) relentlessly”.
The FKNK said it was also compiling a report to the EU Commission.
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Comments
I thought that we had already established that proper enforcement is the only solution. I myself said that banning hunting won't help in any way and you thanked for my rational comment. Can't understand why it seems that only now you realised that. As for your cynical comments about how to report illegal hunters, that doesn’t really reflect well on your willingness to curb this problem which after all is effecting your own hobby. Hunters can report illegalities just like any other citizen, by contacting the police. What’s the problem? So YOU do your part…I did mine and will continue doing it.
However, as regards my first statement, I must admit that I have accused Mr.Lino Farrugia of the wrong crime, and for that, I do apologise to mr.Farrugia.
Mr Farrugia was, of course guilty of another crime, that of assisting and ENCOURAGING others to commit crimes.
As such, my argument still stands.
Are these the people who want us to believe that they condemn illegalities? WHo do they want to fool..Now Ms. Zarb Darmanin..do you condemn Lino Farrugia? or do you agree with his attitude? Do you agree that this person is still a high ranking official within KNK?
I was a gentleman...now lets see how fair you are....although, to be honest, I don't really expect an answer.
So you agree that proper enforcement is the only solution. No need for foreign agitators seeking a total ban on hunting and causing mass hysteria in the process.
incidentally if I had witnessed the person you reported shooting how was I expected to report him. Was I to call the police and waited for 2 hours whilst he carried on abusing the law. Or being a hunter you would have expected anything different.
it would be interesting to read how you expect hunters to report abuse. Since it seems you were not very successful in stopping the culprit.
On second thoughts, why did you not approach him, ask him for his name and ID number and lodged the report at the nearest police station.
Or do you expect hunters to do this for you?
Do your part as you expect hunters to do theirs.
For your information on 14th September I made a report after seeing a Bee-eater shot. When I was talking to the police, the same hunter shot a falcon….2 illegalities. Two hours later, the police had not made an appearance. If they came one and a half hours later they would have caught the hunter as he was shooting sparrows….another illegality. Later I got to know that the ALE were posted at Zabbar feast. Last Friday afternoon, I was at Buskett and although I didn’t see any birds being shot, yet I heard many shots from Dingli and Girgenti area. Every single shot is an illegality. I didn’t report because the ALE were there. On Sunday, my son found a wounded Harrier….yet another illegality. It was handed over to the authority. And that same evening, while at home, I heard a barrage of shots and that was the only illegality I didn’t report because I didn’t know exactly from were the shots came. All these illegalities witnessed by 2 persons in a few days. Seems as if YOU are following the wrong track, by trying to make us believe that illegalities are few when everybody is witnessing them.
How many have hunting illegalities have you reported?
Do you expect hunters to report illegal hunting when the raptor camps jointly organised by Birdlife and CABS are intended to expose as many illegalities as possible, even invent them if need be, in order to lobby for a hunting-free Malta.
Richard you are following the wrong track. Even though you acknowledge our riight to hunt. You might be kept in the dark , by your top brass, as to what Davd Conlin is truly after.
He was thanked by Mr. Tolga Temuge for the pressure put on to our government re spring hunting. Probably the same will apply to All hunting.
I accept the fact that hunters will not join hands with CABS, Birdlife etc to track down and prosecute illegal hunters but that does not mean that law abiding hunters are exempted from doing so when witnessing illegalities, after all it is in your own interest. Last weekend there was a posting on the FKNK forum from a member who urged the FKNK to start reporting illegalities and this was eventually removed and other members congratulated the FKNK for doing so. From postings on the web site you get the impression that the FKNK told its members not to report illegalities. If this is so, it is a real disgrace because every good citizen is DUTY BOUND to report any illegalities witnessed.
Though a small step in the right direction, this is too little too late. I am not for total ban on hunting but words are cheap. I would factually like to see these actions from you, otherwise you can drop the last K from your abbrev:
1. Pro-actively work with organisations such as CABS and Birdlife to seriously control illegalities and not go out with hard worded press releases against these organisations everytime.
2. Publish an official black-list of names who have been caught poaching or aiding others with breaking the law. These people should be banned from your organisation and so banned to hunt. Please also include your own secretary on this list, as well as the number of claimed untouchables .
3. Monitor better your forum. Use this forum to share ideas about conservation. There are many extremists and appologists on these forums who come out with every unimaginable reason to deny illegalities.
ans the above is just a start to maybe convince the general public that you mean business.
Admit that you accused me of not saying the truth when YOU were the ones who were not being truthful!!
IT SEEMS YOU HAVE NOT BEEN FOLLOWING MY COMMENTS OR LETTERS.
IF YOU EVER THINK THE FKNK OR ANY OTHER ORGANISATION WOULD EVER JOIN hands with CABS, Birdlife and other organisations that protect birds in order to track down and prosecute illegal hunters.
READ THESE QUOTES AND JUDGE WHETHER THIS IS EVER POSSIBLE.
"The EU Commission and the European Parliament must be lobbied time and again and encouraged to take positive steps to officially observe, record and act on the excesses by Maltese hunters and the apathy, inaction or plain ineffectiveness of the Maltese authorities. We must not relent in our activity until Malta is a BIRD-HUNTING FREE ZONE.
AND AFTER THE BANNING OF SPRING HUNTING
"Proact Malta Stage II has yet to be launched. Don't forget that our immediate priority must be the birds now in OUR breeding grounds which will have to run the gauntlet of fire in the Autumn. Keep the pressure up RELENTLESSLY. The hunters and their lackeys won't give up without a (dirty) fight - that's for sure! "
THESE ARE QUOTES FROM DAVID CONLIN, THE BRAINCHILD BEHIND RAPTOR CAMPS THE COORDINATOR OF CABS BIRDLIFE AND CO.
NEXT JOKE PLEASE!!
Poachers are the real common enemy and YOU law abiding hunters can do your part as well by reporting illegalities. Reading the posts on the FKNK web site one get the impression that members were instructed not to report illegalities and this is a VERY irresponsible decision. And stop referring to the illegalities reported by Birdlife as exaggerations. That is reality and you know very well that many birds of prey were killed last weekend. If you want to protect your hobby stop trying to dilute the illegalities that those ignorant, selfish and irresponsible shooters are rampantly doing and being witnessed by everyone, and concentrate to hit hard these poachers. They are our common enemy and they need to be eradicated.
Mark Mifsud Bonnici..I guess he was fined for having a stroll in the countryside then....
Maybe you should read the newspapers more often...
It helps....
Jeremy Camilleri did not say that Lino Farrugia was found guilty of any hunting or trapping offence. However, Lino Farrugia was found guilty of inciting others to trap illegally, as well as of disobeying police orders.
If you bother to study Mr. Farrugia's case you will realize he was not found illegal of any hunting or trapping offence.
So your accusation apart from being injurious is also totally unfounded.
How you dare comment about something you know totally nothing about actually beats all of us!!
I am glad that you acknowledge the uselesness of the September Ban.
It has not detered the illegal element nor has it proved useful in apprehending the few abusers. It has only served to castigate the legal hunter..
This ridiculous ban only amplified the Government's lack of will to actually do something constructive.
Birdlfie, IAR and Nature Trust all acknowledged a large decrease in illegalities yet persisit in amplifying the problem even by involving foreign interference. Do you honestly see this as a solution. Do you not care about the bad image Malta is being given because of a couple of hundred illegal shooters. Indeed I feel these few tarnish the image of hunting in Malta. But the amplification of the problem by the protectionists is doing far worse.
You expect hunters to report such people, How easy it is to say that. Yet in all the years you have been trying to rid Malta of these few what have you achieved in terms of arrests. Even with a hunting ban your results are pitiful.
The only way to achieve results is ensuring that the Government acknowledges the need for a new system for the future of hunting.
Thanks for your rational comment.
Indeed people that "are so selfish that they don’t even consider other hunters who unlike them practice their hobby legally." are not hunters. They are people that own a gun for the sole "pleasure" of shooting. Be it a tin can, a fly or an eagle makes no difference as long as they shoot. Luckily this sort is a very small minority.
These sort own a gun license due to a useless system of licensing. Our suggestions to improve this system have been ignored by government. With the result that more of this sort get a gun license without any problem.
In order to tackle the problem Government has to consider the proposals put forward by the hunting associations that care for the future of their practice. It is pointless for Government to try and achieve a balance and involve "experts" that have no idea about hunting or who have bird protection at heart.
hunting involves the shooting of birds listed in Annex 2 of the birds directive and not any protected birds. So the involvement of Bird protection societies is pointless when hunting laws need to be improved.
It's time Birdlife acknowledges this.
If you read the article again you will see that FKNK intend to pursue action against two CABS members for (criminal) trespass. I neither mentioned private property nor the right of FKNK to pursue this course of action.
The article then goes on to the next paragraph to say it will sue an individual and several organisations for I quote "keeping up the pressure (on the Maltese) relentlessly”.
Hence you may now possibly see the difference and therefore the point of my previous comment.
"having a high ranking official fined for illegal trapping"
Admit it and say you were not saying the truth.
I AM STILL WAITING FOR YOUR APOLOGY!!!!!
Does the federation condemn Lino Farrugia's actions as well?
PLEASE, PLEASE, TRY TO PUT FORWARD SOME SERIOUS ARGUMENTS!!!
Maybe one day we will have the possibility of watching all birds fly over, without worrying that some hunter will notice them and shoot them out of the sky!
What a SAD 'hobby'!
The FKNK did not denounce or even acknowlege illegal hunters for many months - it has steadfastly blamed others not itself. Just think about it - who has the guns to shoot down these birds illegally - not the CABS or BirdLife Malta, or the ramblers/walkers, only the FKNK.
The FKNK has completely failed to accept reality, and the reality is most Maltese and other Europeans dislike bird killers.
1. Did the ALE not prosecute more people because they do not have enought resources? If this is the case then the govt should wake up and give them the resources they need!!!
2. Should CABS take the FKNK to court for insisting that the hunting season be banned? I mean come off it, both the FKNK are fighting for what they believe in and nobody would take the FKNK or Lino Farrugia to court if they overheard him say that his next plan was to legalise hunting thoughout the year, cause that is what the organisation is there for..to fight for the rights of LEGAL hunters. However this objective is sometimes obsucred by the strange press conferences it releases excusing the actions of illegal hunters with ridiculous claims!
If birds are shot to be eaten, i am all in favour of it, after all, i eat the fish i catch. On the other hand, hunting a birds to have them stuffed is stupid and a sensless act and i am and will always be firmly against it!
I am not sure that FKNK have much of a case to sue CABS - If they have, then Pro-Life activists must also have grounds for being sued for their "relentless pressure" on all and sundry to eradicate abortion.
These are what I consider to be factual arguments. What does Mr. Conlin has to say now that his true agenda has been exposed? What do CABS have to say about their trespassing onto private property?
As usual, I expect several comments deviating from the actual argument and asking for a ban of the hunting season or attacking individuals personally - these have become the order of the day. Give us a break and let us read some sensible arguments, please!