25 March 2007 Rating 8% No Comment  

BirdLife Malta has pressed Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi to take the opportunity offered by the upcoming EU delegation visit to announce the government's intention to retract its decision to allow spring hunting. Failure to do so could result in Malta being taken to the European Court of Justice much sooner than the government predicted, the organisation said following the EU executive's decision to send a supplementary warning letter. BirdLife Malta President Joseph Mangion said: "It is irresponsible for a government to steer the country towards certain failure. This last formal letter is a clear indication of the frustration in Brussels. It has also made it clear that by widening its legal action to cover four years of illegal hunting, it is preparing a strong case before the European Court of Justice." Malta has no justification on legal or scientific grounds for the government's decision to appease the hunters for a fourth consecutive year since Malta joined the EU. Now is the time for the government to stop sticking its head in the sand and come out to face reality. The EU is sending a delegation to try to reverse the decision to allow spring hunting in 2007. The country needs to give them a positive reply, BirdLife stated. The European Commission decided to send a supplementary Letter of Formal Notice and gave Malta only a month to reply. The Commission also decided to extend the infringement procedure which was so far dealing with the opening of spring hunting season in 2004, to the general practice of Malta to allow spring hunting including 2005, 2006 and 2007. "The government's insistence on allowing spring hunting is clearly driven by a political agenda. The Maltese people and the European Commission are not prepared to tolerate this. The government would do well to consider that it is not only its future that is at stake but also Malta's image within the European Union." added Joseph Mangion. The organisation called on the government to stand up for what the majority of its citizens are demanding and abolish spring hunting once and for all.