She-bear killed in Abruzzo, her two cubs at risk: the WWF will bring a civil action
A few hours after the news of thekilling of a female Marsican bear in Abruzzothe case breaks into the political debate and on the table of the main Italian association for the defense of animals (Wwf). The Minister of the Environment and Energy Security was the first to speak, Gilberto Pichetto Fratin.
“The killing of a female Marsican bear represents a serious episode, on which it is necessary to clarify as soon as possible. I am in constant contact with everyone the institutional subjects who are working in these hours to shed light on the matter: maximum coordination is now needed between the ministry, the Regions, the Park Authority, Ispra, Cufa, mayors and prefects”, said Pichetto Fratin. “Our commitment is also aimed at the protection of bear cubs, doing everything so that they can remain free. Finally, I invite you to multiply your efforts in observing correct behaviors to prevent any possible conflict between animals and people”, underlined the minister. A serious act that can only bring to mind the case of Jj4, the bear that killed the runner Andrea Papi last April in the woods of Caldesin Trentino.
Bear killed in Abruzzo, Evi (Avs): “Government morally responsible for the killing of the Amarena bear”
But not only Minister Fratin. The case has mobilized several political parties, among them Eleanor Eve, AVS deputy and national co-spokesperson for Green Europe, who underlined the clear responsibility of the government in this matter. “Killed the bear Amarena with rifle shots. Here are the dramatic consequences of this government which has given way to free hunting as if we were in the Far West, allowing the killing of wild animals even in urban and protected areas. This government is morally responsible for very serious actions like this, in which a man feels free to take up a rifle and shoot one of the few female specimens of the Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise National Park, which had never caused any problems to people. This must all be stopped.”
Bear killed in Abruzzo, M5S: “Reckless gesture, more respect and no to easy triggers”
To speak too senators and deputies of the 5 Star Movement who in the Agriculture Committee declared: “The news of the killing of the Amarena bear in Abruzzo leaves us deeply dismayed and saddened. But above all it rings yet another alarm bell regarding coexistence with these splendid animals”. “The she-bear in question – they continued – was known for her incursions into population centers and had never been aggressive towards humans. In the very few cases in which he had damaged crops, these were promptly compensated by the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise. In short, it is a reckless, unjustified and unacceptable gesture. And it tells us a lot about how harmful the media and political campaigns carried out for the killing of bears can be, such as that of Fugatti in Trentino”. “We must continue to work with respect for animals and coexistence with wildlife, which we often cause problems, and avoid creating a far west and trigger-happy climate”, they concluded.
She-bear killed in Abruzzo, her two cubs now at risk. The WWF will appear as a civil party
Finally, to intervene on the case also the Wwf Italia. Luciano DiTiziopresident of the association, underlined how the crime – of a very serious and unjustifiable nature – is “the result of a ongoing wildlife hate campaign“. For this reason, he announced, “we will bring a civil action, but the person responsible risks getting away with little. We need a strong response from everyone.”
The appeal of the WWF
“Terrible news and an event that risk frustrating efforts to conserve the Marsican brown bear, the rarest bear in Europe. The news of the killing of Amarena, a bear who has become the first star of social media and today a symbol of senseless violence with which someone relates to nature, represents a serious blow to the hopes of survival of the bear in the Apennines.
Amarena, a female Marsican bear known by local populations and the general public for her visits to inhabited centers in Abruzzo and an object of curiosity since 2020 when she was spotted several times with her four cubs, was killed last night near San Benedetto dei Marsi (AQ) from a gunshot. The man who fired has already been identified by the guards of the Abruzzo National ParkLazio and Molise and by the Carabinieri.
This summer Amarena had been sighted and filmed with two puppies of the year, to date not yet self-sufficient and whose fate is therefore at great risk (bear cubs generally stay about a year and a half with their mother). For this reason, the Park has already started looking for them, but it won’t be easy to get results.
Today to be killed by a rifle shot and by ignorance is one of the most prolific female bears in the recent history of the remaining Marsican bear population. A confident but wholly peaceful she-bear, Amarena had entered the collective imagination and had become pride of a land that has in the bear a symbol of its nature and of the richness of its territory.
It is necessary for the investigations by the judiciary and the police to quickly ascertain how the events unfolded. In our country, unfortunately, the laws are not suitable for adequately punishing those responsible for such heinous acts, and even the existing ones are almost never rigorously applied. It is time to adjust the effectiveness of the sanction system and to invest in territorial surveillance with a preventive and repressive function. The WWF, which is working hard for the conservation of this unique population in the world, through the 2×50 Bear campaign, its Gole del Sagittario Oasis in Anversa degli Abruzzi and the Life Arcprom Project, intends to bring a civil action.
This dramatic act of poaching it is also the consequence of a systematic action of disinformation concerning the coexistence between man and large carnivores and more generally between man and nature” declares Luciano Di Tizio, President of WWF Italy who adds: “We are facing an operation which is increasingly entering the arena of political propaganda, with all the distortions that go with it.
In addition to those of the author of this document, it is therefore also necessary to identify the responsibilities of those who, on a daily basis, in sectors of the political, hunting and agricultural world, irresponsibly and instrumentally feeds feelings of fear and justifies or instigates the use of the shotgun as the only solution. We must react to all this and we appeal for all lovers of nature and the coexistence of human activities and wildlife to meet as early as next week in the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio and Molise to reaffirm the need to protect our extraordinary heritage of biodiversity.
Italy, the many polls tell us, the demonstrations and also the communications we receive every day, it is a country full of people who believe in the importance and beauty of nature.
AND strong action is needed to relaunch the message of protection of our territory and its inhabitants, human and non-human, whose destinies are inextricably linked, as amply demonstrated by now. And this is a specific responsibility not only of environmental associations but above all of the State, in all its articulations”.
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