Over the past weeks and months, much has been said about the issue of banning hunting and trapping. The anti-hunting lobby has presented a petition to parliament – with enough numbers (if verified) – to call for a referendum on the subject.

The hunting bodies, meanwhile, have presented a collection of 100-odd thousand signatures to “safeguard the rights of minorities” in attempting to have the law changed to not allow the call for referenda through the presentation of a petition.

The Prime Minister has declared that he is in favour of hunting being allowed, but at the same time has also gone on record and said that he would not support the introduction of a law that would curtail democratic rights of citizens. Organising such a petition to call for a referendum is one such right.

 Former PM Eddie Fenech Adami had called a referendum when it came to EU membership and he had called it “one of the greatest democratic tools available to citizens”. Former PM Lawrence Gonzi had also done the same on the divorce issue, even though he was not in favour of its introduction.

And so, we are again at a cross-roads. The PN has already said that it is in favour of a referendum to decide the matter. The PN has often been accused of sitting on the fence, but it has been on the right side of history on a number of issues including the original form of the IPP and pushbacks of migrant boats.

As has already been mentioned, the PM has stated that he will not support the introduction of a law to curtail referenda. Given the fact that changing such a law would require two thirds of the House’s vote, it seems unlikely that it will happen.

Hunters bodies have stealthily gone about collecting signatures by saying that the petition was being collected to protect minority rights. But it isn’t about that at all. It’s all about the crucial issue of whether the majority of Maltese people want to allow hunting, or that they want it stopped. As mentioned, hunters have said that they have collected some 100,000 signatures, and those have yet to be verified before anything else can budge. But if this is the case, then they should have no fear at all about putting the question to referendum.

In all likelihood, the matter will be put to the question, and the people will decide. Fortunately, through all the masquerading and shenanigans, common sense will prevail and citizens will retain their most important democratic right, that to call for a referendum.