Hunting decree, environmental associations ask Mattarella to block the measure
The WWF and other environmental associations asked the President of the Republic to block the parliamentary process of the bill. However, the government has announced that the work will go ahead
The controversy over the hunting decree does not stop. WWF Italia, the National Animal Protection Organisation (Enpa), the League for the Abolition of Hunting (Lac), the Anti-Vivisection League (Lav) and the Italian League for the Protection of Birds (Lipu) have written to the President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella to request the suspension of discussion of the bill and the definitive withdrawal of the text. The process of examining the measure in the combined Environment and Industry commissions of the Senate has now come to an end and the bill could reach the Chamber of Deputies shortly.
The associations' protest
Behind the initiative of the environmental acronyms is an official letter that the European Commission sent to the government last December to report violations of the Birds and Habitats directives contained in the text. The directives referred to in the communication - adopted in 1979 and 1992 respectively - protect the species of wild birds found on EU territory and promote the conservation of Europe's natural heritage.
The associations accuse the executive of not having made public the letter that, according to the Wwf, rejects some fundamental parts of the decree, highlighting critical points such as, for example, the extension of hunting out of season and the weakening of the scientific opinion of the Higher Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (Ispra).
The appeal to the President of the Republic
The associations have therefore asked the President of the Republic to intervene to protect the Constitution and European legality, since 'going ahead by force means taking the responsibility of approving a law knowing that it violates European law and exposes Italia to infringement procedures with consequent sanctions that all Italians will be forced to pay'.
In fact, the accusation levelled at the Senate commissions in charge of examining the measure is that they ignored the EU's warning and proceeded with the parliamentary procedure, rejecting all the amendments tabled by the oppositions, which, according to the environmentalist unions, could have corrected, at least in part, the critical points raised.
