The Animal Party, environmental activists, and organizations held a protest outside the Parliament, in response to a discussion in the Parliamentary Committee on the Environment regarding an issue raised by ELAM concerning the activities of specific environmental organizations and activists. Meanwhile, hunters gathered nearby, along with several ELAM supporters, welcoming the start of the parliamentary debate.
The president of the Animal Party, Kyriakos Kyriakou, stated in remarks outside the Parliament that the debate is cause for concern, as, he said, it touches on issues of democracy, volunteerism, and activism.
ΣΧΕΤΙΚΑ ΑΡΘΡΑ
As he noted, the Animal Party and its supporters gathered peacefully to submit a petition and express their concerns about what this particular debate might portend for the future.
“The Environment Committee is neither a judicial authority, nor the police, nor a state security service,” he said.
When asked whether the Animal Party would participate in the meeting, Mr. Kyriakou said that, as a non-parliamentary party, it had not been invited, adding that organizations had been invited to participate.
He also stated that a specific non-governmental organization, which is at the center of the discussion, had not been invited. “They will meet and discuss this organization without it being present,” he said.
Referring to the hunters’ rally, he said that they have the right to protest, just as, he added, activists also have the right to express their views and work against illegal hunting and poaching.
READ ALSO: PHOTO: Hunters and environmentalists outside Parliament; police cordon off the area for fear of clashes
Mr. Kyriakou also questioned why, as he noted, poaching at the British Bases has decreased by 45%–50%, stating that the question should be answered by those familiar with the issue.
For her part, Toula Poyatzis, President of the Cyprus Society for the Protection of Animals, noted that the same party and the same Members of Parliament who, as she said, spearheaded the amendment of provisions in the Dogs Law to meet hunters’ demands, are now turning against volunteers and activists.
Volunteers and activists, he said, work without pay to protect the environment and nature and “should be respected, not persecuted.”
The Hunters’ Positions
From the hunters’ perspective, Andreas Hatzianastasis, President of the Paralimni Hunting Association, welcomed the start of the parliamentary debate, citing “unchecked actions” by certain activists.
He thanked the ELAM MPs who brought the issue up for debate, as well as the Democratic Alarm and the Democratic Party, which, he said, gave the “green light” for his speech.
Mr. Hatzianastasis argued that activists are trespassing on private property, recording and videotaping citizens and using drones, raising the question of who has authorized them to carry out such actions.
“Whether they like it or not, we are engaging in a lawful activity,” he said, noting that there are competent authorities, such as the Game and Fisheries Service and the Police, which can address violations.
He further argued that the activists’ actions give Cyprus a bad name abroad and called for a mechanism to file complaints in cases where, as he put it, hunters’ rights are violated.
He clarified that hunters are against poaching and that their objection specifically concerns the activities of the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS).
“We are opposed to a specific group, CABS, which follows us and films us while we are engaged in our lawful activities,” he said.
CABS: “It’s strange that we weren’t invited”
Andrea Rutigliano, a CABS spokesperson, stated that he has been active in Cyprus against the illegal killing of birds for about 20 years and is in charge of the organization’s operations in European countries, including Greece, Cyprus, Italy, Spain, and France.
He described it as “strange” that CABS was not invited to the parliamentary debate, noting that the debate largely concerns the organization’s activities.
As he noted, CABS has been active in Cyprus for 18 years in cooperation with government authorities and has contributed to cases against individuals for illegal hunting and trapping of birds.
When asked about the organization’s stance on legal hunting, he said that CABS collaborates with hunting communities in Europe when they comply with the law and that even in Cyprus it receives information from hunters.
He argued that baseless allegations have been made against CABS regarding property damage and trespassing on private property, noting that, to his knowledge, no members of the organization have ever been convicted.
He noted that there had been two court cases against CABS members in which, according to him, they were acquitted, while he added that members of the organization appear before Cypriot courts approximately 15 to 20 times a year as witnesses in cases for which they have provided evidence to the police.
When asked about CABS’s activities in the occupied areas, he said that members of the organization traveled there for three hunting seasons, mainly in the northeastern part of Cyprus, and on two occasions cooperated with the “police.”
He noted that bird-trapping devices using nets had been dismantled, adding that both the use of nets and snares is illegal.
When asked about cooperation with the illegal “authorities” in the occupied territories, Mr. Rutigliano said he acknowledges that these are illegal “authorities,” adding that the organization had to contact the “police” on two occasions in order to intervene in incidents of bird trapping.
People gathered early outside the Parliament building for the protest organized by the Animal Party and environmental organizations, holding signs in support of activism and the protection of animals and the environment. Police were present at the scene, along with the “Aeantas” riot control vehicle.
Hunters also gathered nearby, along with several ELAM supporters.
The rallies were prompted by a discussion in the Environment Committee on an ex officio matter regarding “the impact of the actions of specific activist organizations and activists operating in the environmental sector and the assessment of the need to take measures to address this phenomenon,” which was raised at the initiative of ELAM MPs.
The Party for the Animals had announced on September 14 that it would hold a peaceful protest outside the Parliament, calling on citizens, organizations, volunteers, and activists to participate.
On the “Alpha News” program, Koulla Michael, Executive Director of Terra Cypria, and Petros Anagiotos, Press Officer for the Game and Fisheries Service:
Source: CNA
