'Like the Wild West': Outrage in Italy over plan to hunt wild boars in cities
Animal rights groups protested on Wednesday after Italian lawmakers approved a plan to extend hunting to urban areas in a bid to 'control' the wild boars roaming cities such as Rome.
The budget committee of parliament's lower Chamber of Deputies approved an amendment put forward by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's far-right Brothers of Italy party to the 2023 budget, which will put it to a parliament-wide vote before the end of the year.
The amendment allows the killing of wild animals for reasons of road safety in protected areas, even in cities, with wild boars that pass the necessary sanitary tests allowed to be eaten, according to media reports.
WATCH: Videos of wild boars ‘invading’ Rome streets go viral in Italy
Brothers of Italy insisted it was not about hunting but "control", saying wild boars grazing in public spaces were dangerous to citizens and motorists, and also warning of the risk of spreading swine flu.
Italian agricultural lobby Coldiretti estimates there are more than two million wild boars in Italy, and has warned for years that their increasing numbers in the countryside have caused deadly road accidents and damage to crops.
Meanwhile, in Rome, overflowing rubbish bins are known to attract the families of boars who emerge from parkland surrounding the city.
"The only way to contain their expansion is culling," said Brothers of Italy lawmaker Marta Farolfi.
However, animal rights groups have strongly opposed the measure, saying it could put EU protected species such as wolves at risk.
"The scandalous approval of the wild hunting amendment ushers in a new season of massacres," said Massimo Vitturi, from the LAV animal rights campaign group.
Italy's International Organization for the Protection of Animals (OIPA) described it as something out of the “Wild West”, saying it would allow for the "indiscriminate killing of wildlife".
Italian social media users also responded overwhelmingly negatively to the proposal, with Rome-based journalist and author Riccardo Cucchi describing the plan as "cruel" and "uncivil".
Se quello che sto leggendo sarà davvero approvato, siamo alla più crudele ed incivile delle follie. Barbarie e arretramento culturale. #cinghiali @enpaonlus
— riccardo cucchi (@CucchiRiccardo) December 21, 2022
Pamela Ferrara, in Bologna, commented: "Herds of armed citizens chasing wild boar through the streets of the capital isn't exactly what I imagine when I think of the protection of health and public order."
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The budget committee of parliament's lower Chamber of Deputies approved an amendment put forward by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's far-right Brothers of Italy party to the 2023 budget, which will put it to a parliament-wide vote before the end of the year.
The amendment allows the killing of wild animals for reasons of road safety in protected areas, even in cities, with wild boars that pass the necessary sanitary tests allowed to be eaten, according to media reports.
WATCH: Videos of wild boars ‘invading’ Rome streets go viral in Italy
Brothers of Italy insisted it was not about hunting but "control", saying wild boars grazing in public spaces were dangerous to citizens and motorists, and also warning of the risk of spreading swine flu.
Italian agricultural lobby Coldiretti estimates there are more than two million wild boars in Italy, and has warned for years that their increasing numbers in the countryside have caused deadly road accidents and damage to crops.
Meanwhile, in Rome, overflowing rubbish bins are known to attract the families of boars who emerge from parkland surrounding the city.
"The only way to contain their expansion is culling," said Brothers of Italy lawmaker Marta Farolfi.
However, animal rights groups have strongly opposed the measure, saying it could put EU protected species such as wolves at risk.
"The scandalous approval of the wild hunting amendment ushers in a new season of massacres," said Massimo Vitturi, from the LAV animal rights campaign group.
Italy's International Organization for the Protection of Animals (OIPA) described it as something out of the “Wild West”, saying it would allow for the "indiscriminate killing of wildlife".
Italian social media users also responded overwhelmingly negatively to the proposal, with Rome-based journalist and author Riccardo Cucchi describing the plan as "cruel" and "uncivil".
Se quello che sto leggendo sarà davvero approvato, siamo alla più crudele ed incivile delle follie. Barbarie e arretramento culturale. #cinghiali @enpaonlus
— riccardo cucchi (@CucchiRiccardo) December 21, 2022
Pamela Ferrara, in Bologna, commented: "Herds of armed citizens chasing wild boar through the streets of the capital isn't exactly what I imagine when I think of the protection of health and public order."
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