Hunters fear off-peak spring season
'Hunting period should open tomorrow'
The hunters' federation insisted yesterday that the hunting season should be opened tomorrow and allowed to continue until the end of April as recommended by the government's hunting consultative body.
Reacting to rumours that the government was considering a much shorter season that would not include the peak migration period for quail and turtle dove, the federation (FKNK) said it would be "futile to open a hunting season before it naturally occurred and close it as it approached its peak".
The peak period normally starts around mid-April and continues into May.
The Ornis Committee last month recommended a limited spring hunting season between April 10 and April 30 on con-dition that only 22,298 turtle doves and 10,837 quails were shot.
It is now up to the Prime Minister to decide whether to accept the recommendation or not and if the hunting season is opened Malta would have to justify its decision with the European Commission.
No decision has yet been announced.
The FKNK said it expected the government to live up to its promises and guarantees now that its right to derogate was reconfirmed by the European Court of Justice, which stated that the autumn season was not a satisfactory alternative for Maltese hunters.
The federation noted that the season recommended by Ornis was "already restrictive and impinged negatively on the vast majority of bona fide hunters and trappers".
ksansone@timesofmalta.com