MP and Malta Rangers Unit clash over private-property claim

Re-elected MP Alicia Bugeja Said has publicly alleged that the Malta Rangers Unit invaded private property, saying she had personally seen it happen. The MRU, an environmental NGO that monitors protected areas and works to prevent environmental crimes, flatly rejected the claim as unfounded. Neither party has backed down.

The dispute surfaced shortly after an episode that drew sharp criticism from conservation groups. Supporters celebrating Bugeja Said's electoral victory drove a truck bearing her campaign banner with a wheelie rubbish bin labelled 'Rangers' and 'Birdlife' strapped to the back. Asked whether the display was meant to mock the two organisations, Bugeja Said stood by her supporters.

'Everyone is free to express their thoughts,' she said. ' Bugeja Said comes from a hunting family and has well-documented ties to the FKNK — the Federazzjoni Kaċċaturi Nassaba u Konservazzjonisti, Malta's hunting and trapping federation. ' In April 2022, weeks after her appointment as Parliamentary Secretary responsible for Animal Rights, Bugeja Said publicly welcomed a court ruling that rejected a Birdlife request for an injunction to halt turtle dove hunting.

The ruling came against the backdrop of European Commission pressure over the species' vulnerability and reported threats of legal action against Malta over its spring hunting practices. The Labour government opened the season regardless, granting hunters the right to shoot turtle doves and quail. The government also moved to reduce penalties and reverse lifetime bans for hunters and trappers found to have broken the law, though no legislative source or policy reference for those changes has been cited.

Bugeja Said has not retracted the private-property allegation. The MRU has been called on to pursue legal action against her if she does not apologise and retract the claim.