The Coalition Against Spring Hunting does not have any knowledge that the government is considering blocking the proposed abrogative referendum.
Coalition spokesman Rudolf Ragonesi was reacting to the hunting federation’s attempt to lobby parliamentarians to change the law and block the vote, followed by the Prime Minister’s vague reply on this matter.
FKNK is collecting signatures to petition Parliament to amend the Referenda Act in the hope of stopping the proposed anti-spring hunting vote dead in its tracks.
Addressing a press conference on the final day of the spring hunting season, Dr Ragonesi said even if such an amendment was made, it would have to be in line with EU law.
“If this happens we will address it. So far there has been no mention of a change,” he said, adding that such a move would be “very controversial”.
Dr Ragonesi said he was still unclear on the Opposition’s view on the vote.
Contacted by this newspaper, the PN last week stood on the fence over the issue.
Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, on the other hand, has made his position in favour of spring hunting very clear, but when asked whether the government was considering changing the law as hunters demanded, he remained vague.
Dr Ragonesi said the coalition had not sought political support, insisting he did not want the issue to be further politicised.
“We are not lobbying parties because we don’t want this to become a political issue. This is a popular issue and should be decided by the people,” he said.
Asked if he thought there would be a difference in the outcome of the vote if it was held alone or tied to an election, Dr Ragonesi said it made more sense to combine the referendum with an election, but felt this would not affect the outcome.
“Realistically we need half the electorate plus one,” he said, adding that the majority of a small turnout was just as legitimate as a majority of a larger portion of the electorate.
Birdlife spokesman Christian Debono said the organisation had handled several illegally shot birds in recent days.
Among them were several kestrels, black wing stilts and bee eaters.