Malta’s spring hunting precedent opens door to future derogations

The European Commission recently welcomed an ‘agreement’ with the Maltese government regarding the framework legislation for this year’s spring hunting season, which opened today.

But a Commission spokesman immediately warned that it should not be used as a precedent for other member states to obtain derogations of their own.

However, it remains unclear why Malta is being treated differently from other European countries in this regard. Nor is it clear whether the derogation will be limited only to spring hunting for turtle dove and quail – as is currently the case – or extended to other areas such as finch trapping.

The federation of Maltese hunting associations (FKNK) confirmed this week that it will be lobbying for further derogations from the European Wild Birds Directive, after successfully obtaining an ‘exceptional’ spring hunting season for 2011.

“This is a test,” secretary general Lino Farrugia said with regard to the season that opens on 13 April. “But at the same time it’s the first step that, if we use it wisely, can give rise to a second and then a third. If this season reflects the seriousness and maturity of the hunters of Malta and Gozo, then FKNK will have more strength to continue negotiating to improve some of these conditions under this derogation.”

Farrugia also hinted that additional derogations may be obtainable in future, including one for the trapping of seven species of finches – illegal according to the Birds Directive, but also promised to trappers before EU membership in 2004.

Elsewhere, conservation groups such as Birdlife Malta have long argued that any special exceptions made for Malta may also be applicable to other member states, with serious implications for the viability of the Birds Directive as a whole.

‘Unique’ circumstances

So far, the Commission has suggested that the exception shall be limited only to Malta, but failed to specify on what grounds. Nonetheless, the Federation of European Hunting Associations (FACE) concurs that Malta’s circumstances are unique, and cannot be applied to other countries.

“FACE agrees with the European Commission that Malta is a unique case because it has very limited resident game species and virtually all hunting is focused on migratory bird species,” a spokesman told MaltaToday. 

“The EC Court of Justice (ECJ) has recognised that the autumn hunting season cannot be regarded as constituting – in Malta – another satisfactory solution.”

However, FACE concedes that derogations remain a possibility elsewhere. “We must however be aware that derogations may be applied across the EU, with each being evaluated by the Commission on its specific merits. Notwithstanding this, the application of this spring derogation must be considered as exceptional and addressing the very specific circumstances in Malta as recognised by the ECJ.”

But under scrutiny, these circumstances do not appear very ‘exceptional’. First of all, the European Commission’s own Management Plan for Turtle Dove (2007-2009) clearly lists the turtle dove as a breeding resident of Malta. The figures are admittedly low (two to five breeding pairs each year) and in no way compare to annual migration figures. But conservationists argue that the reason turtle doves breed in such small numbers is precisely because they are targeted during the breeding season; making the Commission’s justification a circular argument at best.

Besides, there are other EU member states where the migratory situation is analogous, though not quite identical.

Cyprus is another island member in the Mediterranean, and also on the periphery of a major migratory route. The main resident game bird is the Black francolin – a type of partridge native to Asia – and hunters also target mammals such as the European hare. But the island has a similar biannual influx of both quail and turtle-dove, and the mismatch between autumn and spring figures is analogous to Malta’s.

Until 2009, a limited three-week hunting season was permitted in Cyprus, ostensibly to control populations of pest species such as crow and magpie. However, this season was widely regarded as a pretext for hunters to shoot migratory turtle dove and quail.

Following a campaign by Birdlife Cyprus, the government closed the three-week May season and instead allowed shooting of crow and magpie for one week in mid-June – a time of year when the risk to other species is deemed low.

But with its low numbers of breeding pairs (both turtle dove and quail) and considerably higher migration figures in spring than autumn, Cypriot hunters may well find that Malta’s ‘unique’ circumstances also apply to them, and argue that autumn is not a satisfactory alternative to spring.