Re your article ‘Local National Parks Open for Hunting’, 31 May. To get one thing out of the way: I admit to some unease at the proposal.
But for cryin’ out loud: it is one thing for the ‘Land Rights for Gay Whales’ mob to present their usual one-eyed perspective (which is their right), but surely Echonetdaily has some responsibility to come up with a modicum of balance in their stories. Even at a basic level, it is noted the premier ‘claims’ whereas the Greens spokesperson ‘says’ or ‘describes’, and so on.
As stated – I definitely have my reservations about the shooting in national parks proposal. However, advice ‘claimed’ by the premier at the joint media release probably deserves to be aired alongside Greens visions of 12-year-olds being posthumously nominated for the annual Darwin Awards by attempting to stab a cornered 80kg tusked boar.
As reported in more balanced media comment: ‘Ms Parker said allowing shooters in parks was an extension of a policy that already existed. She said hunting dogs remained banned.
‘This is not recreational hunting,’ Ms Parker told reporters in Sydney on Thursday.
‘What we do at the moment is contract licensed shooters… targeting feral animals.
‘This is not about a group of blokes going off for a weekend with their dogs, this is about extending our program using volunteers.
‘These are licensed shooters; they will have to fit strict requirements in order to do this, they will be going in with supervision.’
The shooters will be monitored by park staff.
The final two paragraphs are probably at least worthy of mention.
Greg Williams
Bilambil Heights
