Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/823173
maltatoday, FRIDAY, 12 MAY 2017 News BirdLife Malta calls for independent wildlife police unit JEANELLE MIFSUD BIRDLIFE Malta has called for a Wildlife Crime Unit to be set up within the police force to inde- pendently tackle illegal hunting, as it claims that police officers have been complicit in the prac- tice. While lamenting over lack of police presence in the field due to activities related to Malta's presidency of the EU Council, the conservation group said that "this shameful year will also be remembered for the involvement of police officers in wildlife crime incidents, in particular hunting cases." BirdLife Malta pointed to a re- port by the Committee Against Bird Slaughter (CABS), where activists filmed a poacher hunt- ing during a closed season with a police officer sat by his side for at least an hour. It claimed that the police officer helped the poacher spot passing birds and to adjust his binoculars. BirdLife Malta also made ref- erence to the investigation into Gozitan police officers follow- ing the incident involving British naturalist Chris Packham, who was acquitted of having assault- ed the owners of a Gozo prop- erty and trespassing on the same property. Packham, who was making an independent film about Malta's spring hunt, had called the police after discovering a large cage of protected wild species, includ- ing goldfinch, moorhen, starlings and turtle doves. It is illegal to keep some of these birds in cap- tivity. Packham said in his testimony in court that while he and his crew were filming an aviary on private property from the street, four men stopped near them and told them to leave. He told Mag- istrate Joseph Mifsud that a man had jostled him around while he himself kept his hands down by his side and said nothing. Packham said that a policeman had also pushed him three times although he did confirm that he and his crew were on public land. BirdLife Malta today claimed that one of the police officers who had intervened and "aggressively threatened" Packham on the day was himself a hunter, while the other officer involved hails from the same village of one of the trappers. "To add insult to injury … in court, police testified falsely against Packham and against BirdLife Malta's Conservation Manager Nicholas Barbara," BirdLife Malta added. The group described the situ- ation "worrying", particularly in Gozo, lamenting that police are "normally only reactive taking hardly any proactive measures to ensure that hunting regulations are observed." BirdLife Malta said that this pointed to the need for the set- ting up of a responsive Wildlife Crime Unit which would be "in- dependent and totally dedicated to wildlife crime, without it being inf luenced politically or taken up by other major events in the country." "Only this would deliver the true commitment needed for the conservation of wild birds," BirdLife Malta said. Fire engulfs St Julian's Saddles Bar A 12-year-old girl died yes- terday morning from inju- ries sustained in a traffic collision on Wednesday evening. The accident took place on Triq it-Tlett Ibliet, Bormla, at about 9.15pm, and in- volved a Toyota Funcargo, driven by a 46-year-old man, resident of Isla, and an Isuzu Gemini, driven by a 20-year-old Senglea man. The victim was a passenger in the Isuzu Gemini, along with a 17-year-old woman, of Bormla, and a Senglea man of the same age. Rescuers from the Civil Protection Department were called to free the vic- tims from the wreckage. They were then conveyed by ambulance to Mater Dei hospital. The young girl succumbed to her injuries this morning, police said. The 20-year-old driver was also grievously injured in the collision, while the other two passen- gers in the car suffered mi- nor injuries. Duty magistrate Char- maine Galea has ordered an inquiry into the case. Illegal hunting in spring this year has been at the highest levels in the past three years, BirdLife Malta said 12-year-old girl dies from injuries suffered in Bormla traffic collision JEANELLE MIFSUD A fire broke out at Saddles Pub and Wine Bar in Spinola Bay, St Julian's, and engulfed the build- ing yesterday morning. The fire was reported at 6.15am, and fire fighters were dispatched to the site to ex- tinguish the f lames. Video and images posted on social media show thick, black smoke emerging from the first f loor of the establishment. Members of the Civil Pro- tection Department are cur- rently checking the building for stability. According to police, no inju- ries were reported as a result of the fire. The cause of the fire is not yet known, police added. The bar is one of the oldest establishments in the area.