Ruzie in Nieuw-Zeeland tussen 'grond'jagers en heli-jagers.....

Heli-hunting controversy continues to rage

02-03-2010 By Susan Sandys, Ashburton Guardian, New Zealand


A helihunting operator featuring on YouTube would stop herding animals in his machine if that’s what the public wanted.

Laurie Prouting, who takes clients helihunting in the Rakaia and Rangitata catchments, has caused controversy on-line after an anonymous person, probably a ground hunter, posted footage of him herding game from the air.

The practice is highly controversial, as is shooting game from the air.

Mr Prouting will not allow his clients to undertake this latter practice, however, due to the safety risk it poses to a flying helicopter.

Mr Prouting said yesterday he believed the Department of Conservation was trying to be fair on the helihunting issue, and he did not think it would follow a Canterbury-Aoraki Conservation Board recommendation to ban the sport throughout the region’s conservation land.

This would be an extreme move that would alienate helihunting operators who could try and flout such a law.

He believed the department would instead continue to investigate restricting helihunting to certain areas, such as high mountain tops which were difficult to access by foot anyway.

He was saddened by the rift between foot hunters and helihunters, and would like to see fair debate around the issue.
He said the first he knew of the YouTube footage was when he saw photos from it in a national newspaper.
He had not viewed it online as he was not internet savvy and believed it would take him a couple of hours to find.

However, he had since heard about it and believed it had been doctored to make it look worse than what it really was.

Forming judgements on the footage would be akin to forming judgements on “pub talk”.

“To be hauled over the coals by a kangaroo court is the way I would describe it. I would like to debate the issue if there is a problem,” Mr Prouting said.
“(DOC are) trying to bring in a code of ethics, I don’t see any problem with that. If the general public and DOC don’t want us to herd, then we won’t,” he said.
“While I have done that, I don’t need to, and if the general feeling this is giving us a bad name, then we won’t do it,” he said.

However, he did not believe herding animals by air was any more cruel than many practices in the blood sport of hunting.

He had been called in at times to destroy animals which foot hunters had shot but not been close enough to complete the kill, and seen foot hunters’ prey suffer such as one animal he had had to destroy which had arrows sticking out of it.

The majority of his work was providing transport for hunters to remote areas they were unable to reach by foot.

Ashburton deer hunter John Rowe said he did not object to helicopter operators providing transport, but herding and shooting from the air was “not a very sporting practice”.

(Bron: http://www.ashburtonguardian.co.nz/)