Monitoring of hunters (2)

I refer to the report BirdLife Guns Blazing At Voluntary Wardens Idea (November 21). Henry Fenech Azzopardi's idea is in no manner connected with FKNK's paid advert Call for Applications for Hunting and Trapping Marshalls.

Nowhere in FKNK's advert is it stated that 200 persons will be employed, or that they have to be hunters.

When the government issued a public call for bird migration observers, for an independent study rubbished by BirdLife Malta, only hunters and trappers applied.

So for foreign-led BirdLife Malta, foreigners from their raptor camps and from their partners CABS can carry out this necessary purpose, while local FKNK marshals cannot.

Time and results will tell, just as we are convinced that the final report of the bird migration study will further confirm the European Court of Justice verdict September 10, 2009 which stated that in the particular case of Malta, hunting in autumn for the turtle dove and the quail does not constitute a satisfactory alternative to the same hunting in spring. Anybody can bet that BirdLife Malta will also negatively criticise this report.

It has become normal for BirdLife Malta to take a negative approach.