I refer to two articles on the spring hunting issue that appeared on April 2.

Contrary to what Joe Perici Calascione may think, some of us understand very well the feeling of having our passion taken away. Many of us are passionate about the countryside, as he claims to be, and I personally have seen it disappear before my eyes due to suburban encroachment and development, over a few decades.

This is not the hunters’ direct fault, admittedly, but, as ‘conservationists’, shouldn’t the FKNK have been interested, at least?

I have seen the areas where I’m allowed to pitch my tent become smaller and smaller and, during the spring hunting season, virtually non-existent because camping permits are not issued, in Aħrax, for example.

So I know very well what it is to have my passion taken away. I am sorry the hunters are about to lose their hobby, it seems, for a couple of weeks a year.

Yet, we have all lost the peace and quiet and solitude of the countryside for good and part of the fault lies in FKNK’s failure to live up to its name.

Perhaps, if, in the future, it adopted a radically green position (against further development on ODZs, for instance) I might be inclined to see the hunters’ passions as better aligned with mine and vote in their support next time.

The second article is a communique from SHout regarding uncollected voting documents. I am not sure if the No campaigners actually used the words “power to the people” but if so, I feel the need to point out that this is nothing like that.

This is just one issue where there happens to be a majority – an ‘us’ – which transcends the traditional Maltese dichotomous divisions and which conceptualises ‘them’ – the hunters – as an alien minority.

To me, this does not feel like power, it feels like merely happening to be on the (according to polls so far) winning side.

Power would feel like being able to participate in discussion, goal-setting and policymaking that addresses the very roots of our discontents and not merely some of the symptoms.