While as always firmly condemning any act of illegal killing of protected wild birds, the Federation for Hunting and Conservation - Malta (FKNK) notes the steep escalation of such "reports" since the September 10 European Court of Justice verdict, which "reports" emanate from the BirdLife Malta Raptor Camp and David Conlin's CABS whose foreign groups of people are at present roaming the Maltese countryside.

These "reports" are clearly intended to jeopardise the milestone verdict which Malta, through its perseverance at exposing the truth, was served with by the highest European Union institution. A verdict that noone can change.

The FKNK has asked to be supplied with details of persons that have been apprehended and will be arraigned by the police for alleged killing of protected wild birds, since the arrival of the Camp and CABS personnel.

The FKNK has also devised a system to verify these and any further similar "reports" until the departure of both organisations' groups.

Finally the FKNK emphasises its warning to hunters, wherein it stated that, now more than ever, it will adopt zero tolerance measures with any of its mem- bers who might persist with illegal hunting acts, and therefore will not put up with anything that might again ever jeopardise the traditional Maltese socio-cultural passion of spring hunting.

The FKNK also appeals to the three other hunters' and trappers' associations to adopt similar harsh measures with their members, and that they should never accept any hunter as member who may have had his membership revoked by another association or by the Federation for having been convicted of a hunting/trapping related offence.