The Maltese Government hates Maltese natural heritage and biodiversity. Together with its plans to weaken land use planning laws, it is also failing to protect biodiversity and continuously seeks new ways to weaken regulations to facilitate the unlawful practice of bird trapping and hunting. The government continues to confirm its refusal to properly align with the EU Birds Directive (Directive 2009/147/EC). Government’s recent ‘Green Paper’ about the environment is just hot air, given the government’s continuous undermining of laws, rules and regulations protecting the environment and its hate for the Maltese environment, which it proudly wears on its sleeves.
The recent changes introduced under Legal Notice 251/2025 remove the requirement for bird-ringing equipment to be obtained exclusively via the network approved by EURING (represented in Malta by BirdLife Malta). The weakening of regulations include changes to allow the use of live decoy birds, a tactic formerly prohibited.
ADPD-The Green Party spokesperson and International Secretary Mark Zerafa said: “The trapping season is in and of itself unlawful, now the government is even weakening the regulations regulating an unlawful practice. The European Court of Justice (ECJ) found that Malta’s previous derogation for finch-trapping under the Birds Directive was unlawful: Malta failed to demonstrate a genuine scientific purpose and proper control. Despite this ECJ ruling, the Government continues to open trapping seasons for songbirds and golden plover under the guise of “research”. It is making a mockery out of the scientific practice of ringing by vandalising the legal notice regulating bird ringing to appease trappers. By removing the exclusive link to EURING-approved schemes and recognised training, the Government has opened the door to weaker or uncoordinated bird-ringing practices, which risk undermining data integrity, species monitoring and conservation outcomes. Allowing live decoy birds explicitly weakens protections and allows misuse of wildlife under the guise of ‘ringing’ or ‘research’.”
ADPD-The Green Party Secretary General Ralph Cassar added: “The Government’s stated objective of supporting so-called ‘traditional hobbies’ is evidently being placed ahead of the interests of the Maltese. It is neither progressive nor in any way modern and scientific to engage in the cheap, culturally ignorant, chauvinistic and indeed frankly right-wing populist politics that the Labour government is pursuing. Labour is cynically prioritising the interests of the hunting and trapping lobbies over the conservation of our shared natural heritage.”
“We also have, unsurprisingly, some PL and PN MPs bending over backwards to dance to the tune of these same lobbies. The farcical posturing by PN MEP Peter Agius and PL MEP Alex Agius Saliba, is a case in point, both falling over each other to try and score brownie points, and posing as some ‘defenders of the Maltese’. It is pertinent to note that the legal notices regarding ringing and trapping can be challenged in Parliament, but of course no Government or Opposition MP will dare do that. The real ‘defenders of the Maltese’ – to use their own cheap nationalistic drivel – are those who work to safeguard the natural heritage of Malta, to defend open spaces in what remains of the countryside, and those who work in the conservation of biodiversity. Stop lumping arrogant lobbies who in the year 2025 still bully people and wreak havoc on our common natural heritage with all the rest of us Maltese and residents of Malta and Gozo.”
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Il-Gvern Malti jobgħod il-wirt naturali ta’ Malta
Il-Gvern Malti jobgħod il-bijodiversità u l-wirt naturali tagħna l-Maltin. Ma kinux biżżejjed l-isforzi tiegħu biex idgħajjef ir-regolamenti dwar l-użu tal-art, għax issa qiegħed ikompli jdgħajjef il-protezzjoni tal-bijodiversità u l-wirt naturali tagħna l-Maltin billi jkompli jaġevola l-prattiċi illegali tal-kaċċa u l-insib. Il-Gvern qiegħed ikompli juri biċ-ċar li m’għandu ebda rieda li jikkonforma mad-Direttiva tal-Għasafar (Direttiva 2019/147/EU). Jista’ mhux joħroġ ‘Green Papers’ dwar l-ambjent Malti għall-konsultazzjoni l-Gvern, meta bil-fatti jkompli juri kemm jobgħod l-ambjent Malti.
Il-kelliem u Segretarju Internazzjonali ta’ ADPD-The Green Party Mark Zerafa qal: “L-istaġun tal-insib huwa fih innifsu ksur ta’ liġi, iżda l-Gvern qed ikompli jdgħajjef ir-regolamenti eżistenti u juża r-ringing u r-riċerka serja bħala paraventu biex jaġevola l-insib. Il-Qorti Ewropea tal-Ġustizzja (ECJ) diġà sabet li d-deroga għall-insib tal-għasafar tal-għana hija illegali għaliex l-iskop xjentifiku ta’ din l-hekk imsejħa riċerka mhux ċar u l-kontrolli meħtieġa ma jeżistux. Madankollu, il-Gvern kompla jwebbes rasu u jiftaħ l-istaġun tal-insib għall-għasafar tal-għana u l-pluvieri, taparsi għal skopijiet ta’ riċerka. B’mod insolenti għall-aħħar, il-Gvern qiegħed ukoll jivvandalizza r-regolamenti dwar il-’bird ringing’ biex jaġevola lin-nassaba. Sa ftit żmien ilu, kull ‘bird ringer’ kellu l-obbligu li jsegwi skemi tal-EURING u li jirċievi taħriġ validat. It-tagħmir li bih jitpoġġa ċurkett fuq l-għasafar kien jinkiseb biss mill-organizzazzjonijiet approvati mill-EURING. Dan ifisser li f’Malta, dan seta’ biss jinkiseb mingħand BirdLife Malta. L-aġġornament tal-Avviz Legal 251/2025 ineħħi dan l-obbligu filwaqt li jippermetti l-użu ta’ għasafar tat-taħrik, prattika li s’issa ma kienetx permessa. Qiegħed jiftaħ il-bieb beraħ għall-abbuż mingħajr il-kontrolli meħtieġa u dan ifisser li d-data li se tinġabar mhix affidabbli. Dan hu ta’ ħsara għall-istudju tal-għasafar u għall-konservazzjoni. Il-Gvern qed jinsulta lill-Maltin li għandhom għal qalbhom il-wirt naturali tagħna billi juża l-paraventu tar-’riċerka’.”
Is-Segretarju Ġenerali ta’ ADPD-The Green Party Ralph Cassar żied: “Huwa ċar li l-Gvern qiegħed jagħti importanza akbar lill-hekk imsejħa ‘passatempi tradizzjonali’ milli l-interess tal-Maltin. Din il-politika populista li qed iħaddan il-Gvern Laburista la hija moderna u lanqas progressiva u xjentifika. Hija biss politika rħisa, mingħajr ħjiel ta’ xi livell ta’ kultura żviluppat, li b’mod arroganti tippromwovi l-interessi dojoq u egoisti tan-nassaba. Il-Gvern Laburista qiegħed iċedi għall-interess dojoq, egositi u skaduti tal-kaċċaturi u n-nassaba minflok jiddefendi l-wirt naturali tagħna lkoll.”
“M’għandniex nistagħġbu lanqas li membri parlamentari kemm tal-PN kif ukoll tal-PL qegħdin jipprovaw jidhru sbieħ mal-kaċċaturi u n-nassaba. Xi ngħidu dwar Peter Agius, MEP Nazzjonalista u Alex Agius Saliba, MEP Laburista? It-tnejn li huma donnhom f’taqtiegħa biex jintogħġbu filwaqt li jippożaw bħala ‘difensuri tal-Maltin’. Ta’ min jinnota wkoll li l-Avviżi Legali dwar ir-’ringing’ u dwar l-insib jistgħu jiġu sfidati minn kwalunkwe membru parlamentari. Nilgħab imħatra li l-ebda MP Laburist u lanqas MP Nazzjonalist m’huwa se jazzarda jitlob l-irtirar ta’ dawn l-Avviżi Legali. Biex nużaw l-istess lingwaġġ fqir tagħhom, id-difensuri vera ta’ Malta huma dawk li jistinkaw u jaħdmu favur il-ħarsien tal-wirt naturali tagħna, dawk li jiddefendu l-ispazji miftuħa fil-ftit kampanja li għad fadal, u dawk li jaħdmu għall-ħarsien ta l-bijodiversità. Hemm bżonn li ma nkomplux inċedu għall-pressjoni minn interessi arroganti, li fis-sena 2025 għadhom jipprovaw ibeżżgħu u jwettqu sfreġji fuq l-ambjent naturali, li jappartjeni lilna lkoll.”
Xi posts minn Facebook juru li politiċi tal-PL u l-PN jaħdmu kontra l-interessi tal-ambjent Malti
