2018-06-06
Ms PENNICUIK (Southern Metropolitan) — Next weekend Victoria's three-month duck shooting season will end. While this year we did not see the level of carnage of 2017, where thousands of birds were massacred across Victorian, largely because public pressure caused many wetlands to be closed, there was still widespread cruelty to our native waterbirds. As happens every season, endangered and threatened species, including birds that were not even ducks, were shot and discarded birds were found buried in pits. It is appalling. The Coalition Against Duck Shooting displayed illegally shot birds outside the office of the Premier in early April, as it does every year. I would like to thank the brave and dedicated duck rescuers, who put themselves on the line. It is they who recover birds that have been left on the wetlands week after week, not the Game Management Authority (GMA).
As the Pegasus report found; it is impossible to regulate duck shooting, and non-compliance with the already weak regulations is widespread. On 11 April ABC's 7.30 interviewed ex-GMA manager of compliance George Bucchorn, who had resigned due to the failings of the GMA. He said the GMA does not have the will to investigate breaches by shooters, GMA staff discouraged him from investigating and he was told not to refer to cruelty or to the code of practice.
Recently more regional Victorians have been speaking out about the negative impacts that three months of duck shooting has on them and their communities, breaking the myth that is perpetrated by successive governments that duck shooting is supported by regional communities. It is not true. The majority of Victorians are opposed to duck shooting, and that includes people living in regional Victoria, whose peace is disturbed by shooting and whose economies are not supported by shooters. Congratulations to Regional Victorians Opposed to Duck Shooting on its campaign to end duck shooting and promote nature-based tourism in regional Victoria. Duck shooting was banned in NSW, Queensland and Western Australia decades ago. It is shameful that this annual slaughter of our beautiful native waterbirds is still allowed in Victoria.