Hunters call for reform of gun licensing system

Hunters from one of Malta’s lobbies, the Kaccaturi San Ubertu (KSU), have questioned how a licensed hunter could still own a gun license despite facing charges of attempted murder.

The anomaly was made clear on Thursday when Shaun Demicoli of Birzebbugia, 34, was arraigned by police after shooting a protected lapwing during the controversial spring hunting season.

Demicoli was sentenced to three months in jail, which his lawyer instantly told the court he would appeal, for breaching bail conditions and relapsing.

Demicoli is facing a charge for the attempted murder of a 31-year-old Tunisian national, Riyadh Mrad, who was found unconscious on Triq il-Bajja s-Sabija, Birzebbuga, in March 2014, after suffering serious injuries.

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Demicoli admitted to the charges brought against him on Thursday, having shot a lapwing - a protected species during the spring - and was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment and a €100 fine for the breach of bail conditions.

The court also suspended his hunting licence and confiscated his shotgun on account of having breached hunting laws. But his licence had not been rescinded when he was previously charged with attempted murder.

The KSU’s Mark Mifsud Bonnici said the case highlighted an ambiguity in Malta’s gun licensing system where a person with a criminal record, involving aggression of a police officer and a pending case of attempted murder, was allowed a gun license.

“This person is not one of its members and could never be eligible for membership in view of his character. It is inconceivable that the perception of hunting is tarnished by those who should not be eligible for a gun license and are totally ignorant of hunting laws.

“KSU call on the authorities to rescind gun and hunting licenses held by any such persons. KSU practices a policy of zero tolerance and vets all its members prior to acceptance. We solicit all other hunting organizations to adopt such principles in order to weed  the undesirable element in hunting.”

Hunters who want to hunt on land or for wild rabbits must be a member of a recognised hunting club. After membership, the person is issued with a recommendation letter with which a person can call at his local police office and submits an application for the hunting licence.

According to the Malta police website on firearms licences, police carry out internal checks to confirm that an applicant is qualified to hold a hunting licence, and is then referred to a MEPA (Malta Environment and Planning Authority) test to establish the applicant’s knowledge of the types of birds and the hunting regulations. If the applicant passes the test, then he is contacted by the local police station and a hunting licence is issued.

Malta has derogated from the ban on spring hunting 9 of the Birds Directive, permitting the hunting of some 5,000 quail and 11,000 turtle dove. The derogation is granted to some 10,000 licensed hunters; the bag limit for each hunter is two birds a day and four throughout the spring season: an average of half a quail and 1.1 turtle doves for every hunter