Once again the issue of permitting ‘recreational’ hunting in our precious national parks has raised its ugly head. Over the past few months many people who have worked tirelessly to overturn the Shooter’s Party amendments to current protective legislation, believed that we had won. The Labor Party had made clandestine deals with the Shooter’s Party in order to privatise the NSW Lotteries (TAB) and the Shooter’s Party had agreed in order to gain access to all state national parks for the purpose of ‘sports’ shooting. The ‘Game and Feral Animal Control Amendment Bill’ was introduced into parliament by Robert Brown (Shooter’s Party) in June of this year. However, an unexpected turn of events looked like thwarting the Shooter’s Party’s plan when the opposition voted with Labor to sell off the TAB’s and the Shooter’s Party for a limited time was left out in the cold. But the Shooter’s Party was not about to give up and demanded access to all national parks.

Despite assurances from then Environment Minister, Carmel Tebbutt, that recreational shooting would not be allowed in national parks the Rees government capitulated and made a backdoor offer which would allow shooters access to 13 national parks.

In response, Lee Rhiannon, Greens MP, organised an emergency protest rally in Sydney on the 27th October outside Parliament House to show the Labor Government that any decision to allow shooting in National Parks is unacceptable. The rally was attended by over a hundred members from organisations including WLPA (pictured below)Animal Liberation, The Nature Conservation Council, Wires and other animal and environment groups. The strong attendance showed the Labor Government that any support for the Shooters Party's 'Game and Feral Animal Control Amendment Bill' will not be t o l e r a t e d .

Above: Representatives from WLPA, at the protest rally outside Parliament House, Sydney.

“Black swans, galahs...cockatoos... eastern, western and red kangaroos and many more...a defenceless cast of thousands stand to lose their lives...”

 Most notably the rally was also attended by uniformed National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) field officers who had come to speak out against the bill, which would quite literally put them in the firing line. Kim de Govrik, NPWS Area Manager for Kanangra Oberon, stated that the proposed bill was incompatible with the legitimate conservation efforts employed by the NPWS and any recreational shooting in the parks would be to the detriment of native fauna and flora. The World League congratulates the Public Service Association (PSA). The union which represents park rangers, ordered its members not to assist in establishing recreational hunting in national parks in NSW.

This Bill is now on the Notice Paper and could come up soon for debate. If the Bill is passed it will permit the shooting and therefore carnage of both native and non-native animals. On the Shooters Party thrill kill list are the: black swan, galah, blue-winged shoveler, Australian white and straw necked ibis, pink-eared duck, shelduck, water whistling duck, purple swamp hens, cockatoos, native pigeon, eastern/western and red kangaroos, euros and many more. A defenceless cast of thousands stand to lose their lives so that the Shooter’s Party can persist with their draconian and cruel pursuits, for pleasure.

The opening up of some 372 state forests to shooters since 2006 was bad enough, now the last remaining protected spaces for wildlife will become a war zone. For many animals this bill will mean a totally unnecessary and horrendous death, torn apart by hunting dogs or shot with bows and arrows to suffer in misery and pain.

 Just when you think things couldn’t get worse for our ‘protected’ species, the bill lists more species to be defined as “game”. The idea that the Minister for Environment must first be ‘consulted’ is worthless as the quotas for killing native animals would beset by the Game Council. This effectively transfers responsibility of ‘protection’ of native fauna (with the exception of endangered species) to the Minister for Primary Industries, whose portfolio encompasses the Game Council.

Despite trying to market themselves as “conservationists”, shooters are not genuinely interested in controlling feral animals (in fact they often introduce feral animals into areas) but are most interested in having political control and power over the defenceless who can not shoot back, scream out or defend themselves.

This mindset is repugnant to most compassionate and sensitive citizens. Considering the Shooter’s Party receives only 2% of the state’s vote it is totally unacceptable that they receive such power and privilege above and beyond the rest of the community.

TAKE ACTION!

We implore you to email or phone your local MP and write letters to the newspapers condemning this action by the Rees Government.

Email: Nathan Rees: thepremier@www.nsw.gov.au 

John Robertson, Minister for Environment office@robertson.minister.nsw.gov.au             

OR write to them c/-  Parliament House Macquarie St Sydney 2000