'No shooters in national parks'

SYDNEY — "No shooters in national parks", and "Hunters: Our parks and animals are not fair game", were two of the placards carried by 300 people outside the NSW state parliament on October 27.

They protested a Shooters Party bill that would permit hunting in the state's national parks. The state Labor government has been negotiating with the Shooters Party to secure its votes on government legislation.

Representatives from the Greens, the World Wildlife Fund, Animal Liberation, the Wilderness Society, and rangers from the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, addressed the crowd.

In a statement promoting the rally, Greens MLC Lee Rhiannon said: "The [NSW] Labor government is once again doing deals with the Shooters Party. Labor has made an offer to allow hunting in 13 national parks in exchange for the support of the two Shooters Party MPs in the NSW upper house to help pass government legislation."

Rally organisers urged people to send letters and emails of protest to NSW Premier Nathan Rees and other MPs.

From GLW issue 816