The government of Malta has left itself with not enough time to open any significant spring hunting season for 2008, with the result that today’s hearing in the European Court of Justice is likely to be not much more than a formality.
This is the view of a number of pundits, both locally and within the Commission, who spoke to this newspaper confidentially to explain that even if the “interim measures” requested by Brussels are not granted, the laws governing the dates for hunting seasons are drawn up in such a way that it is not possible for this year’s spring season to begin before 2 May. Traditionally the annual spring migration begins to taper off around 10 May.
This view appears to be also shared by several hunters, who judging by comments posted on the hunters’ federation website, seemed to have resigned themselves to losing at least this year’s spring season.
The same sources claim that the situation plays neatly into the government’s hands, as the European Court of Justice will be held responsible for the failure of this year’s spring season to open, regardless of the outcome of today’s hearing.
The European Court of Justice in Luxembourg convenes today at 9:30am for the first hearing in the case brought against Malta by the European Commission, which claims that Malta has illegally permitted hunting in spring for four consecutive years between 2003 and 2008.
Apart from hearing the initial salvoes in this court case – which is expected to take several months to conclude – today’s hearing will also decide on the European Commission’s request, made last February, for “interim measures”, which would effectively quash any spring season for this year. The hearing is being conducted behind closed doors, and the decision is expected later today.
The ECJ defines such measures as “(those which) seek a suspension of the operation of measures which an institution has adopted and which form the subject matter of an action, or any other interim order necessary to prevent serious and irreparable damage to a party.”
If granted, the measures would automatically preclude any spring season for 2008, but not for future years, as the fate of spring hunting will ultimately be decided by the full court case, not just today’s hearing.
But experts argue that even if no measures are granted, there is no real chance of a spring season in 2008. The reason for this involves the Ornis Committee, composed of Government, BirdLife and hunters’ representatives, and which by law has to recommend dates for the season at least four weeks before the season starts.
Ornis has twice already postponed its decision for this year’s spring season, preferring to adopt a “wait-and-see” approach in view of the ongoing infringement procedures, particularly the request for interim measures.
Contacted yesterday, Ornis Committee chairman Louis Cilia explained that the committee could still convene this week, despite the fact that all its members resigned after the election in accordance with protocol. “At the last meeting we took a decision to wait until the European Court ruling on the interim measures,” Cilia said. “No date has yet been fixed for the next meeting.”
But because of the four-week legal notice period, there is an automatic cut-off date after which no such decision can feasibly be taken, for there will be nothing left of the spring migration to actually shoot. Even if the committee met tomorrow and decided to open the season, the earliest available date would fall at the beginning of May. This would limit the season to not much more than a week.

rvassallo@mediatoday.com.mt