THE HEAD of the Game Fund has said his team are working flat out to stamp out illegal poaching after coming under-fire by bird protection activists.
On Saturday, members of the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS) said they were left without state assistance during an investigation and called for patrols to be more strictly monitored by authorities.
The group claimed they were stalked by men in pick-up trucks on farmland near Avgorou, before being approached by a poacher in a balaclava wielding a shotgun who threatened to shoot them.
Pandelis Hadjigerou, Director of the Cyprus Game Fund described the criticism regrettable, but told the Cyprus Mail that his organisation is proving effective despite resources being stretched and limited manpower.
“Our staff are not able to be everywhere all at the same time, we are doing everything we can. With the current manpower we are doing well and we are about to prosecute a lot of people,” he said.
Hadjigerou added that the Game Fund will shortly be publishing a list of recent prosecutions and he would continue to update the public of progress made.
CABS members have now left the island for operations in Italy, and say they will publish a full report of events in Cyprus on their website.
“After a week of joint anti-bird trapping with Friends of the Earth Cyprus we leave with mixed feelings. Despite ensuring that all enforcement agencies were informed in detail of our activities it appears that their priorities are elsewhere,” said David Conlin from CABS.
“Nonetheless we received support from the Cyprus police and this is a base to build on. The presence of armed men at trapping installations and stalking of our teams in the field is a worrying escalation. This form of criminal intimidation is not acceptable and must be suppressed with the full force of the law,” he added.
Bird protection activists say they are seriously concerned that illegal trapping of migratory birds has returned to levels higher than 2004, when Cyprus joined the EU and have called for the government to enforce laws to eradicate the practice.
CABS conduct patrols across the EU and have recently received the wrath of hunting organisations in Malta, who have described their tactics at ‘theatrical’ – claiming their patrols were ruining the islands image internationally and the country’s tourist industry.
