Monday, 19th January 2009
NGOs praise green PN candidates
Four environmental NGOs praised two Nationalist Party candidates who have made the environment their main campaign platform.
The NGOs also defended Edward Demicoli, who last week was at the centre of a boycott by the hunters' federation (FKNK).
The federation urged hunters, trappers and their families not to cast a single vote for Mr Demicoli in June's elections, saying it was "ironic and shameless" that he chose to attack hunting given that he had served as deputy head of the Malta-EU Information Centre (MIC), which had assured hunters that spring hunting would not be affected by EU accession. Mr Demicoli was unfazed, and maintained that the goalposts on spring hunting had shifted three years after accession, following a case in Finland.
The NGOs supported Mr Demicoli's position. "In today's age, Maltese citizens, whether they are hunters or not, have the liberty and wisdom of choosing whom to vote based on their free will and not on medieval directives issued by interest groups such as the FKNK," the NGOs said.
The group, made up of Gaia Foundation, Nature Trust (Malta), Friends of the Earth and BirdLife Malta, said the FKNK administration has no respect for EU nature directives but is only interested in looking after their own interest.
The NGOs said they believe all MEP candidates from across the political spectrum should respect EU nature conservation directives and work for the benefit of Malta's natural environment and not for the benefit of certain interest groups.
The NGOs also mentioned PN candidate Roberta Metsola Tedesco Triccas, who will also be largely basing her campaign on environmental issues.
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Comments
THEIR INTERESTS ARE WHAT YOU STATED. THAT IS PRECISELY WHAT I MEANT BY THEIR INTERESTS. I NEVER SAID THEY WERE WRONG IN DOING SO. THE SAME WAY I SEE NO WRONG IN LOOKING AFTER MY INTERESTS OR THE FKNK FOR THAT MATTER..
APART FROM YOURSELF, IT WAS ONLY THESE NGO'S THAT SEEM TO FIND OBJECTION.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Parliament_election,_2004_(Malta)
Carmelo (Lino) Farrugia - 3119 Votes out of 245,722 valid votes cast , making a percentage of 1.269 % of total votes cast. A far far cry from the claimed 30,000 votes. Wake up to new realities hunters.
It is a free country, a democracy. This is what these MEP candidates are showing us. Politics changes according to the demands of the population and these candidates are recognising this change.
If you have any objections, you are free to take part in any of the MEP elections and maybe you can do better than Lino Farrugia who is not even featuring on this list:
http://www.maltadata.com/mep.htm
But wait!! Maybe they do not want to show again how foolish there turnout for Lino Farrugia was in 2004.
And what 'interests' could these truly environmentalist NGOs have? Protecting the environment, and with it, the natural environment. Stopping people from shooting and killing animals just for fun, just for the sake of the so-called sport, which is no sport any longer. That is the sole interest that these NGOs have.
There is no comparison between the 'interests' of the NGOs and those of the hunters and trappers, so continually malrepresented by the likes of MMB.
@ Louise Vella - In whose name do you speak when you claim that the sole issue during the EP Elections will be immigrants? Have you got proof of this? While I consider this issue to be an important one, my way of looking at things is very, so very different from yours. Your way of setting about it is one which shows vile and hateful sentiments - to the point of being truly inhuman. Something that I, find very repugnant. I will never stoop so low as to think and express myself the way you do, whatever experience I am made to go through by one of them.
Mr Demicoli is a red (sorry, blue/green) herring. His candidacy is meant to divert attention from the main issue of the campaign for the election to the European Parliament in June which will be ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS, as they will be coming by the boatload.
These NGOs are protecting their OWN INTERESTS too, since they expect any green candidate to protect theirs.
The FKNK boycott is justified because it was not individual candidates that saw it fit to protect FKNK interests, But the whole PN party that guaranteed such interests.
Before accusing the FKNK of having "no respect for EU nature directives" they might wish to recall that the same PN hosting these "GREEN" candidates informed the EU of the use of a derogation from the said directives. The PN is so convinced of its right that it is contesting its rights in the EU courts.
Birdlfie is also recorded as having accepted spring hunting provided it is limited to Dove and Quail. Their inconsistency equals that of Mr. Demicoli.
If these NGOs and "GREEN' candidates are to be taken seriously they should respect what the PN government always stated on the spring hunting in it's WRITTEN GUARANTEES
http://www.europe.bg/en/htmls/page.php?id=17795&category=223
Uncontrolled fish farms galore, "eco"-TAX upside down, taking Spring hunting to EU courts, ODZ abuses, new permits outside structural plan, MEPA the developers' baby, Ghadira road rape, public transport disaster, Marsa power station, asthma everywhere......
the PN has used the "environment" solgan to seek political gain - when the PN itself does not even know what the term environment means!
The safeguards (albeit rarely effectively implemented or enforced) that have been enacted are just thanks to the EU directives
If one just looks at the EU parliament itself, it is evident the the Greens have always sought to safeguard the environment and the quality of life in the EU and beyond - in fact it was due to the defficiencies of the politicians that the Greens themselves took the plunge into politics!
And for those who think that the PN is a green party just remember what JPO was trying to bulid in the beautiful mistra!!! No comments needed.
The NGO's have every right to say what they say , because that is what they believe, but you cannot blame the FKNK for reacting like it does , because the same people that promised lots of things before the EU referendum , now that we are in the EU , are doing exactly the opposite and we are experience this in lots of things not just the hunting matter . What hurts the most is that this argument is being won by lies and cheating.If this was a good argument it would have been argued fairly and honestly . But then i keep forgetting that i live in Malta . And this is exactly what i have come to expect unfortunately .