The spring hunting referendum will be held on April 11, the Prime Minister said yesterday as he declared he would be voting in favour of retaining the status quo.
Joseph Muscat said his government had a mandate to retain the law that permitted exemptions from the EU Birds Directive that bans spring hunting.
“My position is clear. It’s been clear for years. My stand may not be the most popular one but as Prime Minister it is my duty to take a position. But whatever that decision, we will respect the people’s will,” Dr Muscat said at a press conference yesterday.
My stand may not be the most popular one but as Prime Minister it is my duty to take a position
He also said he would allow Labour MPs a free vote.
A decision by the Constitutional Court last Friday gave the green light for a referendum on spring hunting this year. It will enable Maltese voters to make their voice heard on whether spring hunting should be retained.
Malta exempts itself from the EU Birds Directive to enable a spring hunting season each year. The vote is scheduled to be held just before the season usually starts – last year the season opened on April 12.
Dr Muscat said the spring season will not open this year if people voted to ban spring hunting.
The Opposition immediately reacted to the Prime Minister’s announcement, saying it was wrong of Dr Muscat to have decided on the date for his own political purposes. The Nationalist Party pointed out the law states the date should be set by the President.
“The decision on spring hunting is now in the hands of the people. They should be free to make that decision without this issue being politicised even further,” the PN said.
When asked what position it would take, the PN said it would first be discussing the matter internally.
The Coalition for the Abolition of Spring Hunting said they were not surprised by the Prime Minister’s statement since the position of both political parties on spring hunting was clear.
“The reason why we are having this referendum is because those positions don’t seem to respect popular public opinion which is against spring hunting. With the referendum the public can have the space to decide,” a spokesman told The Sunday Times of Malta.
The coalition stressed that the referendum would mark the end of backroom deals made between politicians and the hunting lobby.
“The referendum should free the political parties from this blackmail and the people will decide,” the group said.
Attempts by the Hunters Federation to stop the referendum from being held were rejected by the court, which said arguments submitted by hunters’ organisations did not hold ground and could not stop the people’s voice from being heard.
The referendum will be held in conjunction with local council elections. For the result to be valid, voter turnout has to surpass the 50 per cent mark.
The Hunters Federation reacts:
In its first reaction after the Constitutional Court’s decision the Hunters Federation (FKNK) said it was prepared to face the challenge and would be issuing “directives and directions” shortly.
It expressed disappointment that “minority rights” were being threatened. The FKNK said that while the majority governed, such governance should be made with full respect towards minorities.
It said it would confront the challenge to protect “the legal rights, the interests and the privileges” of all those who believe in what democracy means. In its decision, the Constitutional Court established that hunting was not a right. The Federation said it was also disappointed that its petition with over 100,000 signatures had been ignored by Parliament, except for one MP – Parliamentary Secretary Michael Falzon, who is also a hunter.
It insisted that the referendum would not eliminate the right for Malta to apply further exemptions on spring hunting. “No one can take away the right the government enjoys as an EU member state... that whenever it wants it can apply a derogation to permit spring hunting, the same right enjoyed by all other EU member states.”
If the majority vote against spring hunting in the referendum, such a move by the government would go against the public’s wishes. The Prime Minister stated yesterday the people’s will would be respected.
The FKNK said the referendum was “anti-democratic” and the “unscrupulous action” of a handful of people from minority groups “abusing the Referenda Act”. The Coalition to Abolish Spring Hunting collected 41,494 valid signatures demanding a referendum.
“The extremists want to extinguish the life of a group of people from a minority group simply because they do not enjoy the same fortune themselves, or to maybe reach some personal ambition that is more often than not political or financial,” the FKNK said.
It “incited” all hunters and trappers to stay united within the FKNK.