"Comhaontas Glas may soon become possibly the first Green Party in the world to support hare coursing in a parliamentary vote. A sickening thought for those of us who voted Green to give a voice to the voiceless" - Read John Fitzgerald's Letter in today's Irish Daily Mail...
Protect our animals
Letter to the Editor, Irish Daily Mail, 24th May 2021
A new law to be enacted by the UK Government will formally recognize animals as sentient beings and ensure that animal welfare will receive priority in all policy decision-making.
We in Ireland could do well to emulate this move, given our high incidence of animal cruelty and the antiquated laws we have to deal with it. The UK law will clamp down further on hare coursing, which was banned by a Labour government in 2004. This vile practice legal in Ireland.
In Britain the police pursue hare coursing gangs vigorously. Here, we have a Green Party in government that has excellent policies on animal welfare, but it lacks the power to implement them. Such are the constraints imposed on it by its coalition partners that it appears set to oppose TD Paul Murphy's Bill that seeks to end the practice whereby hares are snatched from the countryside, held in unnatural captivity, and then used as live bait.
Comhaontas Glas may soon become possibly the first Green Party in the world to support hare coursing in a parliamentary vote. A sickening thought for those of us who voted Green to give a voice to the voiceless.
Animal welfare groups have been campaigning since the mid-1960s for a ban on hare coursing and yet the cruelty continues while politicians either condone it or choose to ignore the issue.
We may be a long way from recognizing animals in law as sentient beings, but we can at least protect the gentlest creature in the Irish countryside from this pathetic excuse for a “sport.”
John Fitzgerald,
Callan, Co. Kilkenny
ACTION ALERT
Tell Minister Darragh O’Brien to refuse any further licences for cruel hare coursing.
Minister Darragh O’Brien (Fianna Fail, Dublin Fingal)
Tel: (01) 618 3802 OR (086) 251 9893
Email: darragh.obrien@oireachtas.ie; minister@housing.gov.ie
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DarraghOBrienTD
Twitter: http://twitter.com/DarraghOBrienTD
Urge Taoiseach Micheál Martin and Tanaiste Leo Varadkar to respect the wishes of the majority and ban hare coursing and all bloodsports.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin
Email: micheal.martin@oireachtas.ie; info@fiannafail.ie
Phone: +353 (0)1–618 4350 or +353 (0)21-432 0088
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/michealmartintd/
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/@MichealMartinTD
Tanaiste Leo Varadkar
Telephone: +353 (0)1-640 3133
Email: leo.varadkar@oireachtas.ie; finegael@finegael.ie
Tweet to: http://www.twitter.com/@LeoVaradkar
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LeoVaradkar
Visit the Oireachtas website for contact details for TDs https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/members/tds/?term=/ie/oireachtas/house/dail/33
Witness the cruelty of hare coursing in Ireland
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRkXOvbUPNNjMc6LShwiiXBfnDAPbykf
Please support our campaign with a donation
https://www.paypal.me/banbloodsports