Those caught hunting illegally will be facing increased enforcement and harsher penalties, the Government said yesterday, days before the start of the autumn hunting season.
A working group consisting of stakeholders including representatives of NGOs and hunting organisations will be formed for this purpose, the Parliamentary Secretariat for Animal Rights said in a statement.
The secretariat added that the Government would be beefing up enforcement during the hunting season which starts on Sunday.
The police’s Administrative Law Enforcement Unit will be given additional staff to ensure greater surveillance and monitoring of the countryside.
The parliamentary secretariat said it also initiated the process of inter-ministerial consultation on a proposal for the establishment of a Wildlife Crime Investigations Unit within the police force. “It is envisaged that once established, this unit will significantly improve coordination and concentration of enforcement efforts in the field,” the secretariat said.
The Government will also initiate the process of developing a national communication strategy for the eradication of illegal killing, trapping and trade in wild birds, the statement read.
It is in the interest of all bona fide hunters to report any hunting illegalities to the police
The statement comes after a flock of flamingos which landed on the islands over the weekend was targeted by poachers. In yesterday’s statement, the secretariat said it deplored incidents where protected birds were targeted.
The Government’s decision to roll back the hunting curfew from 3pm to 7pm sparked immediate controversy. NGOs Birdlife and the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS) described the move as disgraceful, saying hunters would have the freedom to roam the countryside just as migrating protected birds fly over the island.
The NGOs insisted that the change in curfew would spell the death sentence for protected bird species.
The Government defended the move by pointing out it had also extended the curfew by a week to cover the first week of October, a crucial period when roosting birds of prey were most vulnerable.
No sooner had the dust settled than a war of words surfaced after shots were fired at a flock of flamingos.
The St Hubert’s Hunters underscored the problem of illegal hunting in a statement it issued yesterday to wish all hunters a good hunting season.
“It is in the interest of all bona fide hunters intent on eradicating the few remaining defaulters to report any hunting illegalities to the police. Hunters are also urged not to give in to any provocation by bird protectionists’ intent on scrutinising hunters throughout the duration of their witch hunt,” the association said.