The Federation for Hunting & Conservation – Malta (FKNK) said in a statement this afternoon, that once it is “aware of the details of the person/s who allegedly shot a Flamingo that was using the islands as a resting place and since it has also been reported that the person/s have been apprehended by the police, if such person/s is/are within its ranks, the FKNK will proceed immediately to suspend such person/s from the FKNK and wait for the final decision of the Courts to be able to cancel his/their membership completely.”

The FKNK stated that it has “no further adjectives to use to describe the person/s who carried out this criminal act.

“Furthermore, the FKNK believes that adjectives are non-executive deterrents and that it is time that serious action is taken by our Courts. Whilst the Courts have already stepped up punishments meted out in recent cases and the FKNK also cancelled the membership of the persons in question, the persistence of the remaining handful of ‘poachers’ must understand that they have no further shelter anywhere in civilised society”

The FKNK said, “this specific incident comes at a time when FKNK officials were in the area of Salina to admire the bird in question and other FKNK members were on guard in the area and took pictures of the bird.”

“Furthermore,” FKNK said, its “officials were in liaison with the Ornis Committee chairman with a view to assist in the guarding process. These incidents that involve the use of a shotgun and that are somehow linked with hunting have created, over the years, one of the highest anti-hunting profiles within the view of the general public.”

“These criminal acts have absolutely nothing to do with hunting and the legal hunting community abhors any such acts and consequent comparison,” concluded FKNK Secretary General Lino Farrugia.

Photograph by BirdLife of the flamingo on Monday afternoon at Salina.

Permalink: FKNK to suspend those responsible for shooting flamingo