Having just returned from Birdlife Malta's Springwatch camp I thought I give you a quick update about the situation. I hope many of you have followed Chris Packham's YouTube posts - for sure they are not comfortable viewing but we will not be able to make a change by closing our eyes. I am extremely happy that he has decided to tackle head on the ignorance and complacency I have myself experienced many times when mentioning the issue to both birders and non-birders in the UK.
The Maltese countryside was swarming with hunters each morning. Legal hunting involved the shooting of turtle dove and quail until 2pm on weekdays and 12pm on Sundays. The number of shots counted each morning was low compared to previous Spring hunting seasons.
There were two reasons for this. Firstly, migration was slow due to a strong North wind. Secondly, the FKNK hunters' association had clearly advised its members to refrain from exceeding shooting quotas and from committing illegalities in light of the strong public attention created by the petition for a referendum to end Spring Hunting prepared by Birdlife Malta and the Coalition for the Abolition of Spring Hunting. The strong police presence also underlined the fact that the government was very keen to demonstrate that it was well capable to police the hunting season so that there was no need to end Spring hunting.
This also explains the extreme reactions to Birdlife Malta and Chris Packham's team recording illegalities - and there were a lot of illegalities. As you might have heard, both Birdlife Malta's press officer and Chris Packham himself were detained by police. I found myself surrounded by 5 uniformed officers which accused me to have made illegal recordings of a hunters' property and family when in fact I was following the route of a Marsh Harrier flying up the coast from a public road. It was explained to me that even looking over a hunter's property was an illegality (not true).
Details of the atrocities we witnessed can be found in Chris Packham's video posts, I will not repeat them here. The posts also highlight the oppressive atmosphere Maltese people encounter when they are out to enjoy their countryside which has been taken over by men with guns - many men with guns - which will not stop to drive people out of public places they should have every right to enjoy.
On a positive note, I noticed a remarkable change in Maltese people's attitude to the hunting issue compared to September 2013, when I was as Raptor Camp. It was extremely encouraging to have lots of people come up to us and show their support. The referendum campaign has clearly touched a nerve and many Maltese have become fed up with being bullied by a small minority.
Chris Packham's presence has meant that the effort to collect money for the campaign necessary to promote the referendum has exceeded its target sum of €50,000. It is, however, far from certain that the referendum will succeed - many of the estimated 65% of the Maltese population who have stated that they are against Spring Hunting have family and friends that are hunters. It will be an extremely difficult decision for them to vote against their family and friends' interests.
Therefore it is vitally important to also put pressure on the European Commission which so far has been largely inactive and ineffective on this issue, leaving it to the Maltese government to resolve the issue. While this may in many cases be a sensible approach it is not appropriate in a situation where this very government is clearly dominated by the hunters' lobby, playing to their every wish.
So please do write to your MEP, donate to the referendum campaign if you can afford to or join Birdlife Malta for the next Raptor Camp in September 2014. I have met some of the most courageous and inspirational people while in Malta, who have fought for many decades to end this madness.
These are our birds. The way things are going, I might well witness turtle doves being extinguished during my lifetime. I am not willing to accept this without putting up a fight. If I get doubts, I remember the breathtaking display of a group of Montagu's harriers in fields below Dwejra Lines or the big smile on my face every time I heard a group of bee-eaters approaching.
Thanks to Liz Snell, Bob Relph, Roger Watkins and anyone else who, unknown to me, is supporting this cause. For further information you are very welcome to get in touch with me (seec@gmx.net). Alternatively, Chris Packham's website (where you will also find a link to find your relevant MEPs and a sample letter) as well as the Facebook pages of Birdlife Malta and Committee Against Bird Slaughter will keep you up to data with all the latest developments.
Silke Einschuetz