Referendum for the Abolition of Hunting in Italy
Recreational hunting is a violent and bloodthirsty activity, say the initiators.
On 1 July 2021, a petition drive began in Italy for a popular initiative against recreational hunting.
500,000 signatures by the end of September
The goal is to collect 500,000 signatures by the end of September. Reaching the required number of signatures would make it possible to call a referendum on the abolition of recreational hunting. The regulatory framework for recreational hunting in Italy is rooted in outdated and vague parameters dating back to 1979.
Roe deer, foxes, birds: every year, Italy's recreational hunters kill almost half a billion wild animals. Species that are protected or already under severe pressure — due to habitat loss, land consumption, pesticides, and climate change — are also being hunted.
Let us reclaim forests, fields, and nature in general. An end to recreational hunters who violate nature, often through arson, to terrorise wildlife and make them even easier prey.
GianMarco Prampolini of the Comitato Referendum SI aboliamo la caccia
2.3 million wild boar — caused by recreational hunters
Italy's farmers are suffering increasingly from the rampant wild boar problem. While the country counted an estimated 500,000 wild boar in 2010, the number is said to have risen to around 2.3 million today.Recreational hunting in Italy also means violation of private property rights, due to Article 842 of the Civil Code.
Recreational hunting in Italy is a sport that injures and kills people. In 2018, for example, there were 13 deaths and 50 injuries within hunting areas — a total of 63 victims.
Recreational hunters and the arms industry: a deadly combination that harms nature and kills people.
More on the subject of recreational hunting: In our dossiers on the criticism of recreational hunting gather fact-checks, analyses and background reports. The scientific evidence is presented in the overview Studies on the Effects of Recreational Hunting.
The position of IG Wild beim Wild: IG Wild beim Wild rejects recreational hunting. Our model is the canton of Geneva, which has managed without recreational hunting since 1974: without hunting seasons, without hunting dogs, without driven hunts, without high seats, without the animal cruelty and crime that go hand in hand with hunting season elsewhere. What has worked there for over fifty years disproves every position paper by JagdSchweiz. An association that bases its policy on claims it refutes in its own documents is not a professional organisation, but a factory for misinformation.
