Foresta 2000 ranger Ray Vella has been shot again and BirdLife Malta and Din l-Art Helwa yesterday dismissed the possibility of it being an accident, saying that an unknown person hid in the trees and purposely ambushed him.

Mr Vella, who has already been shot in the face and had his farmstead torched, went to do the rounds at the Foresta 2000 park at about 6am. It was before dawn and he noticed that the gate was open and the padlock destroyed. He got out of his jeep to shut the gate, leaving the engine running and the lights on. At that point he was shot. Fortunately, Mr Vella’s injuries were not serious and he was taken to Mater Dei Hospital, suffering from bruising and a laceration to the ear.

DLH and BLM, who are the joint employers of Mr Vella, held a news conference yesterday with Martin Galea, Din l-Art Helwa president, saying that the “third time might not be lucky”.

“We believe that this is no accident and Ray was ambushed by someone who was waiting for him. It was dawn and the lights of his jeep were on when he was inspecting the gate and the broken padlock,” said Joseph Mangion, BirdLife Malta president.

Mr Galea said “It is despicable this cowardly criminal element have targeted Ray again. It is a testament to his courage and character that he has not been intimidated as is their aim. We call on the police to find the culprits, before the situation gets totally out of control.”

This is one of several attacks the Foresta Ranger suffered over the last two years. In a similar incident in September 2007 Mr Vella, while tending to his field, was shot in the face by a hunter who then swore at Mr Vella and cursed BirdLife before fleeing. In June 2008, Mr Vella’s family farm was set on fire, olive trees were uprooted, and oil was poured down his freshwater well. Mr Vella also suffered greatly when the Foresta 2000 project site that he cared for many years was targeted by vandals who uprooted and chopped down thousands of trees and shrubs in May 2007.

“Over the last two and a half years BirdLife Malta conservation sites, volunteers and staff have been seriously targeted over 20 times. In all these cases no one has been brought to justice,” continued Mr Mangion.

“This failure, therefore, protects the perpetrators of these crimes and gives them free rein to continue the abuse. We do not want to hear any more condemnations or promises that these criminals will be brought to justice but want to see results.”

Mr Mangion also said that some hunters must have information about what happened and appealed for them to condemn the incident and to pass on any information they have to the police.

The Malta Independent asked whether the two organisations believed that it might be time for gun control, and while both said the police needed to pass a strong message by bringing the perpetrators to justice, “gun control is another matter altogether. We hope it doesn’t come to that”.

TMID also asked whether Mr Vella would continue to patrol the site alone. “No, we will have to review that in the near future.” Asked whether closed circuit television was an option, the two organisations said the logistical problems were too great and that cameras in such an isolated area would be vandalised anyway.

Again prompted by TMID, both organisations said that the vast majority of people in Malta supported the park and BLM and DLH would not be intimidated into giving it up.

Police informed BirdLife and Din l-Art Helwa that investigations were launched and a person who might have information about the incident was being questioned by the police. Duty magistrate Joseph Apap Bologna appointed a number of experts to assist in an onsite inquiry.

Meanwhile, Alternattiva Demokratika issued a statement in support of Mr Vella, labelling the incident as a “cowardly attack”.

Environment Minister George Pullicino, who is away from Malta on government business, also condemned the attack and expressed solidarity with Mr Vella.