The recommendation of the Ornis committee to open this year’s spring hunting season is “indecent” and “undemocratic”, according to the No campaign.
Reacting to the decision, which will allow spring hunting between April 12 and 30 should the Yes vote triumph in the referendum, Shout spokespersons Moira Delia and Saviour Balzan nailed a symbolic “notification for an indecent proposal” notice to the wall of the Mepa building in Marsa, where the meeting took place.
Mr Balzan said the decision was “indecent” in light of scientific evidence compiled by government bodies that showed there were viable alternatives to the spring hunting season.
“The Ornis committee is dominated by hunting sympathisers and it is no surprise that, despite overwhelming evidence presented to them that spring hunting should not be allowed in Malta, they approved a spring hunting season,” he said.
“The decision was also taken despite a referendum taking place on spring hunting on April 11. This decision shows once again how the hunting lobby has bullied Maltese institutions over the years to get their way.”
Ms Delia added that permission for a spring hunting season could only be granted by the people on April 11.
“The referendum is a democratic process whereby the people can decide about the future of spring hunting in Malta,” she said.
“It is profoundly undemocratic that the Ornis committee has tried to pre-empt the decision that will be made by Maltese voters.”
YES CAMP WELCOMED ORNIS DECISION
The referendum Yes campaign said it welcomed the Ornis Committee decision to recommend this year's opening of a spring hunting season under derogation, pending the outcome of the referendum result..
As in previous years, it said, the Ornis decision was based on the scientific report prepared by the Wild Birds Regulation Unit (WBRU) which evaluated the present conservation status of the turtle dove and the quail based on ringed records available from the so-called reference populations known to migrate over the Maltese islands.
The report concluded and classified both species conservation trends as stable.