Italy: 80 hunting victims documented in the 2018/19 season

There was nothing but bad news to report about hunting in Italy during the last hunting season, given the fact that various animal species have become extinct or been severely decimated due to hunting. Or that non-native animal species were introduced into the wild by hunting associations, thereby disrupting the ecological balance, which ultimately also harmed people themselves — the wild boar being one such example.

But hunting in Italy also means violation of private property, thanks to an outdated Article 842 of the Civil Code, which authorises hunters to enter private land without any consent from the owners. And it is also an infringement on the inviolable right to vote, which prevents citizens from having a say in the matter, as the example of the Piedmont region shows.

Hunting is also the only sport that injures and kills people. As every year, the association of hunting victims, which has been active since 2007, has compiled a dossier of hunting weapon victims at the end of the hunting season (1 September – 31 January).

Below are the accident figures for the hunting season (2018/2019)

• Civilian non-hunters: 27 victims in total, of whom 18 were injured and 9 killed
• Hunters: 53 victims in total, of whom 41 were injured and 12 killed
• Total: 80 victims, 59 injured and 21 killed.
• 2 children were injured

Within the hunting area there were 13 deaths and 50 injuries (including 2 children), making 63 victims. Outside the hunting area there were 8 deaths and 9 injuries, making 17 victims. Of these, 7 of the dead and 7 of the injured are not hunters but civilians.

The highest number of hunting accidents are recorded in the Campania region in southwestern Italy, with 15 victims, followed by Friuli, Lazio, and Lombardy. The number of domestic animals and protected wildlife killed — including wolves, bears, and birds of prey — is unknown. Add to this dangerous shots fired in close proximity to populated residential areas, tons of lead residue from hunting ammunition left in the countryside, and hunters who shoot at animals fleeing from wildfires.

But the association also points out that, although the number of hunters continues to decline, they are still privileged by politicians — above all by the PD (Partito Democratico Italiano) and the Lega.

The Constitutional Court in Piedmont also made clear last year that hunting cannot be recognized as having any positive value from an environmental or animal welfare perspective.

It is an old story. Hunters have influence, but so does the weapons industry, with its lobbyists in parliament and in the regions. Hunters and the weapons industry. A deadly combination that harms nature and kills people.