Weapons free in France ?

And how to protect yourself and your animals against hunters… a bit

As anyone who lives in the countryside in France knows, hunters can be a big problem. Barely a week goes by during the hunting season without a news report of them killing or wounding someone, or of them killing a pet or some livestock which they misidentified as a game animal.

It is possible under certain circumstances to make your property a “refuge de chasse” which means that hunters are not allowed to hunt there. Effectively you give your hunting rights to an association for the protection of animals such as ASPAS (L’Association pour la protection des animaux sauvages) or the LPO (Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux). The association doesn’t use those rights itself and doesn’t let anyone else use them, so hunting is prohibited.

This was made possible by a judgement from the European court of human rights. Before this decision, it wasn’t possible to prevent hunters from hunting on your land. The court considered that this was a breach of rights to property and to conscience. You can read the decision here: http://hudoc.echr.coe.int/eng?i=001-62843

A few years ago we carried out this procedure for our land. Naturally the hunters were not happy and let us know it. They still come as close as possible to our house so that we are disturbed by the sounds of their shots and the barking of their dogs.

Unfortunately even if you create this refuge de chasse then hunters can still hunt on your land if they can get a “battue administrative”. This is a “beat” ordered by the authorities with the intention of clearing a sector of some animals. It’s often carried out under the pretext of the animals causing damage to crops or being a risk to traffic. They don’t actual have to have done any harm. It can be carried out preventively. And then all your rights disappear. With no warning a group of hunters and a few officials can turn up on your property and start hunting. And if you try to stop them, they will tell you that you’re breaking the law and face a prison sentence or a hefty fine… the worst thing is that they are not lying about that.

Read further here

Dear hid but still taken away by hunters

Link to the article plus video :

https://www.hbvl.be/cnt/dmf20201222_93856457

Injured deer seeks shelter under shopping cart against hunters but is still taken away: “Barbaric practices”
Customers of a supermarket in Basse-Ham, France, were shocked on Saturday when a deer sought shelter under shopping trolleys. A hunting party was organised near the supermarket, but the animal had escaped when it was chased by a hunting dog.

Some customers tried to save the deer, but moments later a group of hunters arrived and put the – still living animal – in the trunk of their car. “When will these barbaric practices be abolished,” it sounds on Twitter where the “shocking images” were shared.

Millions of birds bred per year to be hunted in France

Read more here

France authorizes to kill 18.000 Turtle Doves …

… in 2019-2020  even though there is a worrying  decline in their numbers Europe wide. One cause of the decline is thought to be lack of seed and grain as food during the breeding season, resulting in a much shorter breeder season with fewer nesting attempts. The species is now included on the Red List of conservation concern.

Read more here

Brutal Wolf Killing Continues Across Europe

The protected status of the wolf is determined by the EU. Yet, EU countries determined what this status practically implies by including the species in different Annexes of the Flora and Fauna Habitats Directive. Therefore, countries like France and Slovakia, as well as regions of Spain can still legally cull wolves to a certain level. Yet, even Spain stopped the wolf culling activities last season. In the meantime, illegal killing of wolves continues to happen in many other countries. Here are a few highlights that need international attention. Read more 

Somme department will kill 1500 badgers!

The publication of the decree is imminent. The Prefect of the Somme, Muriel Nguyen, will allow the slaughter of 1500 badgers in the department, from June 22 to September 15. Regularly renewed, the measure has been the subject of a public consultation in recent weeks, very followed, with comments sometimes from abroad. The draft decree was also accompanied by a petition published on the platform “Change.org” denouncing this “almost permanent persecution of the badger in the Somme”. As of this Tuesday (May 21st), the text had a total of 255,000 signatures!

https://premium.courrier-picard.fr/id11752/article/2019-05-22/somme-la-prefecture-va-autoriser-la-chasse-de-1500-blaireaux

Sunday in France: a day of war, a clash of cultures

It’s Sunday morning around 9 o’ clock. It’s time to let the geese and the ducks out of their night enclosure. We keep them in at night because of predators. I open the door of the house. I hear howling dogs and screaming men in the distance. There is no doubt about it. Hunters with their dogs chasing deer, boar, foxes, badgers, rabbits, birds, cats you name it, jeopardize the countryside of France once more. Sunday has become a day of war between men with guns and wild animals. A war to hunt down innocent sentient beings that already struggle for survival. Because in France more and more land is used for agriculture/urbanisation/industry. Habitats disappear. Hedges disappear. Forests are increasingly being exploited for wood. Birds, hedgehogs, reptiles, deer are in danger. But still the government, the members of parlement supported by the french president dance to the tunes of the hunting federations.

Demonstration against hunting in Paris on 13 October 2018

People won’t take it anymore. In October more than 2000 demonstrators walked the streets of Paris to show their discontent and just recently 76 associations published a joint letter to the government to ask for a ban on hunting on Sunday and to stop certain cruel hunting practices still used in France, but prohibited in other parts of the world. The cruel practice of gassing and excavation of foxes and badgers from their dens for example. After a long period of tremendous stress and terror by hunters or their dogs they are eventually shot or have their neck wrung, are beaten to death with a shovel or even given to the dogs alive. For every fox tail the hunter gets a reward.

Fox found yesterday without a tail hanging in the bushes (source: facebook )

Glue is used to catch birds officially protected under European legislation, to be eaten. Waders are killed by the millions. Can you imagine? Whilst people in other countries of Europe are trying hard to protect these birds, they are massacred here in France in the name of “Tradition”.

Birds trapped by glue

It’s Sunday today in France. It’s the most dangerous day of the week. You can’t walk your dog. You can’t go mushroom picking. Just recently in two separate incidents a cyclist and a hiker were killed by a hunter. There is a danger that a stray bullet smashes your window. Or that your own horse, cow or cat or dog is shot “mistaken” for a wild boar or a deer. In some regions hunting with hounds and horses terrorise deer into gardens, villages and towns or cause an accident on the road. Hunters kill each other too. Not so bad you might say considering the fact that there will be less of them in the end. But it really shows you how dangerous this passtime is. They shoot themselves in the foot, they fall off clifs, they shoot their own family members and friends… In the season of 2014/15 122 accidents were registered of which 14 were deadly.

English cyclist shot and killed in French alps by hunters ( source: facebook )

It’s Sunday morning in France. There’s a war going on outside. A clash of cultures. Those who use the countryside for peaceful recreation to relax after a week of work, and those who stalk it with murderous intent. Certain mayors have closed down their woods, their recreation areas to give hunters a free hand. In the name of safety. And I, I can still hear the shooting around me. I hear the dogs baying and barking. Even if I wish to go out for the day, I have to stay in the house and keep an eye on our animals safe in the garden. Going away is out of the question: it would be too dangerous to leave the animals behind. Is this what you would call living like a god in France on a Sunday? Please SAY NO to France!

National Plan for Wolves

 

The french government has recently published a new national plan for the near future (2018 – 2023) on how to deal with conflicts between the (increasing) wolf population in France and live stock  farmers. For this plan it seems that the government uses numbers of how many wolves there are in France, supposedly scientifically based, however no sources are given. There have always  been suspicions from environmental organisations about the statistiques the government is using. The number of wolves in France given by other sources, like the european union seems to be a lot lower. Taking the number of 400 wolves supposedly living on  french territory the french government is aiming to kill 10% which means 40 wolves per year to keep the numbers stable and to keep the farmers happy. This is against european legislation as the wolf is protected in Europe.

 

The plan called “Plan Loup 2018 – 2023” is open for public consultation until the 29th of January 2018. Everyone can leave his opinion so please do so on this link (in french) .

 

http://www.consultations-publiques.developpement-durable.gouv.fr/projet-de-plan-d-action-national-sur-le-loup-et-a1775.html

A deer drowned by hunters

It happened only a couple of days ago. A deer has been drowned during a hunting exercise with hounds and horses in the North of France (Forêt de Laigue) just above Paris. Attention the image are shocking! Not for children to watch. The French government does not intend to stop these hunting practices even though a huge lobby has been started by several associations. Please ban France next holiday!

 

More information is to be found on the site of AVA who published the video:

http://ava-picardie.org/

 

 

Pigeons culled

In a little village called Formerie between Abbeville and Rouen hunters have had the permission to shoot on pigeons. Excuse? Because they too many. Boycott France this summer, please. No other words needed.