The Spanish Government aligns itself against hunting and appeals Andalusia’s Predator Control Order

The Andalusian hunting sector expresses its deep indignation at the decision by the Spanish Government to bow to environmentalist pressure and align itself with anti-hunting movements to appeal the Andalusian Predator Control Order, a regulation that Andalusian hunters had been waiting for more than 25 years and which represents a fundamental tool for making progress in the conservation of biodiversity and the balance of ecosystems.

Ignoring the rigour and soundness of a rule drawn up with technical, scientific and conservation criteria, the Ministry of Social Rights, Consumer Affairs and the 2030 Agenda has decided to intervene against this order from a standpoint opposed to hunting activity and to the role it plays in the rural world, without assessing its usefulness for conservation.

An appeal with an ideological backdrop

In this regard, Andalusian hunters believe that this appeal responds more to ideological criteria than to scientific or natural environment management arguments, and they denounce that, once again, hunting activity is being used as a political target, instead of recognising the role it plays in species conservation, the prevention of population imbalances and the maintenance of the rural environment.

“It is incomprehensible that an order built on technical criteria, after decades of waiting and administrative blockage, is now being used as a weapon of political confrontation,” explains José María Mancheño, president of the Andalusian Hunting Federation, who adds that “what should be a tool to manage and conserve our natural heritage is becoming a stage for an ideological dispute completely removed from the reality of the Andalusian countryside.”

The defence of the order

In response to this new attack on hunting by the Ministry of Social Rights and the 2030 Agenda, the Andalusian Hunting Federation reports that it has entered an appearance in the proceedings opened following the appeal filed by both the central Government and Ecologistas en Acción Andalucía. Likewise, the FAC can confirm that the Artemisan Foundation has also entered an appearance in the proceedings to defend the legal text of the order.

“The problem is not the Predator Control Order, nor even the conservation of Andalusia’s natural heritage. The problem is that certain movements continue trying to impose their principles and ideology and turn hunting into a political enemy, when reality shows that hunters are part of the solution for conserving our ecosystems,” concludes Mancheño.