The FKNK hunters' federation insisted today that the Electoral Commission should verify all signatures submitted with the petition for a referendum to ban spring hunting.

In a statement, the federation said it had been informed that the Electoral Commission may not be verifying all signatories’ relative qualifications but would only be carrying out random checks.

"The FKNK hopes that this will not be the case, since the outcome of the abolitionist referendum could have a devastating effect on the very lives of thousands of Maltese and Gozitan nationals and their families," the federation said.

It noted that during the presentation of the petition to the commission, those present wore t-shirts  with the wording “Stop Spring Hunting”.

"Many still recall some other anti-hunting ‘personalities’ who, up to quite recently, still sported t-shirts with the wording “Stop Illegal Spring Hunting”, the FKNK said.

This, it said, showed that these individuals may be abusing of a democratic procedure to abolish a legal interest of a minority group for their personal gain.

"Nothing stops them from extending such abuse against the legal interests of other minority groups. Furthermore, these abolitionists want to deprive Malta from its right as an EU Member State to apply derogation from the “Birds” Directive," the federation said.