Hunters’ land concession at Miżieb-Aħrax illegal, judge rules

A land deal between the Maltese government, the Lands Authority and the hunters’ federation FKNK for the stewardship of the Miżieb and l-Aħrax countryside areas as hunting reserves, has been rendered null by a Court of Appeal.

The decision by Mr Justice Lawrence Mintoff comes months after NGOs’ objections to the FKNK land deal had been thrown out by the Administrative Review Tribunal back in January 2022.

Mintoff said the 9 October 2020 deal signed between the State and the FKNK was now “null and without effect” because it had not been carried out according to the formalities of the law in force.

The Appeals Court said the Lands Authority had no right at law to concede to the FKNK a “personal right” to manage these sites without a formal process mandated by law.

“The law regulates property transfers by sale, emphyteusis, rent, or part-exchange...

“The Tribunal had to determine whether the agreement qualified as a ‘rental’, and whether this was itself justified at law, that is for humanitarian, philantropic, cultural or social reasons. In the absence of such justification, the concession is deemed null and without effect.”

Mr Justice Mintoff used the Tribunal’s same reasoning, when it observed that hunting in Malta was an emotive issue for many, to say that the Lands Authority was indeed expected to have made a more rigorous examination as to whether these countryside parcels could be therefore entrusted to the FKNK within the parameters of the law.

“Today’s judgement penned by Judge Lawrence Mintoff handing over Miżieb and Aħrax woodlands to the hunting lobby is a historic win for social justice and nature,” said BirdLife CEO Mark Sultana. “It sends a clear message to the government that political will can only be implemented within the legal parameters.”

The Lands Authority had granted the guardianship of the two woodlands to the FKNK in a deed secretly signed between the government and the organisation in October last year. The two sprawling sites are traditional hunting grounds but also popular as recreational areas.

The case was filed by BirdLife Malta, Moviment Graffitti, Din l-Art Ħelwa, Friends of the Earth (Malta), Flimkien Għal Ambjent Aħjar and the Ramblers Association.

Supported by a nationwide outcry against the news of large stretches of land being given secretly to the FKNK, the NGO said that the Court’s decision was indeed historical. 

“Lawyers Claire Bonello, Joseph Ellis and Martin Farrugia were capable to show the Courts how unfair and illegal this secret agreement was, where the large stretches of land at l- Aħrax and Miżieb were to be enjoyed only by a few hundred hunters during the long months of hunting seasons in Malta, to the detriment of the general public,” Sultana said.

The NGOs had protested that EU law was breached when the government failed to conduct any of the required studies in order to determine and evaluate the environmental impacts of such a large concession.

They also said that EU law was also not followed when the public was not allowed to participate in the drafting of the resulting management plans due to the fact that the agreement was negotiated in secret.

The NGOs said the concession of these two areas for a risible sum of €400 in order to entertain hunting pastimes would result in lost revenue which should have been accrued towards the Environment Fund.

“Now that the deal has been annulled by the Courts, the five NGOs demand that government accepts this judgement and declares immediately that all this land is a public area all year round,” Sultana said.

The NGOs also demanded that the government pays attention to the general demands, from all strata of society, to protect nature and conserve open spaces. “Now is the time to show true commitment to this value... Today we celebrate a big win, but continue working hard for more,” Sultana said.