This blog is not about civil unions, but a couple of weeks ago I wrote one about the subject, in which I vehemently argued against the idea of having a referendum about this non-issue.

My argument was based on the strong belief that minority rights should not be decided upon by a majority vote.

Then just a few days later, I was asked to sign and collect signatures for a petition to call for a referendum to end spring hunting.

Of course I signed it, and of course I got many other people to sign it too, and now, I’m keeping my fingers tightly crossed that it will make it through.

I did this with pure conviction that not only should spring hunting be abolished, but if I had to have it my way, all hunting would be illegal and punishable by a long prison sentence.

But, although I’m in full agreement with the cause of stopping spring hunting once and for all, I still struggled with the fact that with my signature on that petition, I was essentially approving that the majority decides on the rights of a minority – hunters.

But is this truly the case?

Are hunters really a minority group whose rights should be protected and improved?

Can we compare hunters to minorities such as gays, ethnic minorities and people with disabilities?

I DON’T THINK SO.

Sadly however, this seems to be the convenient believe of every Government in my lifetime. Each and every one of them has protected and improved hunters’ rights like there was no tomorrow, and with each and every general election came more disgraceful rights for hunters, and more disregard for animals.

And now, we’re in a situation where the Government is ready to go out of its way to provide more and more derogations, more and more privileges, and will only stop (or slow down) until the EU does something about it.

Though I’m convinced that this will happen at some point or another, it will take time, and in the meantime, hunters would have murdered and trapped more birds than I’d like to think about.

Until that happens, they would have deprived us of thousands of beautiful birds that are meant to be enjoyed in their living, breathing, flying state, and not dead with 16 pallets in their head, or trapped in a 10cm x 10cm cage.

This is not a case where the rights of a minority will not impose in any way on the rights of the majority; it’s not like the case of divorce, where those who don’t want it won’t go for it; it’s not like having equal rights and opportunities regardless of sexual orientation, which if achieved would have us all better off.

No! In this case, the rights of this minority seriously impose on my and your right to nature, to walking in the countryside during springtime without risking a bullet up our nose, and the right of our children’s children to one day see living, breathing birds flying over our little island.

In addition, every year, with all these derogations, excuses and complicated reports that we submit to the EU to justify our need to kill more and more, we risk huge fines - fines that could amount to millions; fines that if ever imposed would have to be paid by all of us, not just hunters – that’s me, you and our children.

So, as wrong as it might sound, a referendum will take the onus off our politicians, who have time and time again proven to be spineless in this regard.

No, it’s not ideal, but we need to do what we need to do, before it’s too late.

Spring into Action now. Sign the petition.