Glue hunting: would the public rapporteur of the State Council finally lean in favour of birds?
Wednesday, November 20th, 2019 will mark a turning point – hopefully, decisive – against hunting with glue, cruelly trapping small birds by this method which prevents them from escaping free, forces them to panic, injure themselves or even die. Never before had this happened: the public rapporteur is preparing to conclude the referral of all ministerial decrees on the hunt with glue, which we attacked at the State Council in 2018. Before this it was the court of justice of the European Union, and for that, it takes up the argument that we had developed against the decrees of 2019.
Editorial at November 20th 3.00 p.m.
At the hearing, the public rapporteur asked for the cancellation of the “wild geese” decree 2O19 and the referral of the “hunting with glue” decrees 2018, which we attacked at the State Council, before the court of justice of the European Union by taking up our arguments against the 2019 decrees. Delayed, response in three weeks.
Unsurprisingly, the public rapporteur confirms in his conclusions the suspension of the decree on the extension of the 2019 wild geese hunting season by asking for its cancellation once and for all. So obviously, we absolutely do not prejudge the final decision of the judges of the State Council, but the function of the public rapporteur is to indicate to them the ins and outs of the appeals and to advise them on a direction.
Coincidence?
At the same time as we filed the appeals on the 2019 decrees, the Ministry of Ecological and Inclusive Transition expressly asked all the Prefects concerned to carry out checks on the quotas of birds hunted. Why? Because we asked for proof that the birds hunted are in small quantities, since this is what the ministry claims … How many, where, when and which birds are trapped, which ones are released? Since we are told that the traps are selective, the minimum would be to be based on facts! And to say that the defenders of the planet and of animals are often considered at best as just dreamers, at worst as ridiculous ultra-sensitive … But as soon as we demand accountability, we realize that there is none! Who is rational in history?
The interest of hunters is not the general interest
Biodiversity is depleted, birds disappear while they are part of the common heritage of Humanity. The interest of hunters has for too long been confused with the general interest, namely the conservation of our heritage, and therefore of the individuals who compose it. The fact that the European Commission has given France formal notice confirms the non-selectiveness of the glue hunting, as well as the lack of supervision and control by the authorities, which gives us good hope for a probable end to the glue hunting in the medium term. Even more so (other «traditional» hunts, the lengthening of the duration of the hunting of wild geese, etc)!
We await with determination the audience of Wednesday, November 20th and the decision that will follow for glue hunting and that of wild geese, as well as the repercussions of the formal notice of France by the European Commission, a procedure in will failure be triggered? For the other traditional hunts such as that of the falling wire traps, netting on land and on the lakes, we will continue to systematically attack those arrested and who have targeted small birds.