In the forests of England, a small group of masked and dark-clothed activists suddenly appear to try to sabotage fox hunting parties, seeking to save these animals from the teeth of used dogs, in a fierce clash of cultures, according to Agence France-Presse.
A participant blows a hunting horn (EPA)
Two groups coordinated using radio devices, each of these activists in a car; The first called herself “Kermit,” and the second “Animal,” and they moved on to work.
The members of this association called “Hunt Saboteurs,” which has been active for 60 years, want to prevent fox hunting, a tradition that they say continues despite its ban 18 years ago. They therefore confront the hunters who confirm that they are carrying out their activity legally.
In an activist raid targeting hunters from the Tharlow Hunt Club in a village in Suffolk, about 100 kilometers north of London, members of that group, numbering about 20 people who had maps on their phones, communicated via radio to determine the location of the team they were pursuing.
When hunters notice them, they urge their horses’ steps to speed up. “The most important thing is that they do not lose sight of us,” says Angela Vassiliou, a member of the “Hunt Subtours” group, who comes from north London.
The group’s first goal is to prevent the killing of any fox. They intend to divert the dogs’ paths through various methods. If their efforts fail, they collect evidence.
A participant jumps a fence during the hunting process (EPA)
For example, the judiciary relied on a videotape to order in 2019 a member of the Tharlow Hunt to pay a fine, as the tape showed hunters and vandals disputing over the remains of a fox on December 26, 2017, during a traditional hunting party on Christmas Day.
If hunters want to abide by the law, they are supposed to follow the scent of a fox in a mock hunt called “trail hunting.”
This name has appeared since the issuance of the 2004 law, but its critics see it as a speck of dust in the eyes and a camouflage of what is actually happening. “They’re always hunting foxes,” says Philip Walters, of the Huntspotters group in north London.
The Countryside Alliance, which brings together Tharlow Hunt hunters, confirms in a statement sent to Agence France-Presse that the club “practices hunting activities in accordance with the law.”
The hunting club describes the activists as “animal rights extremists,” and they complain of break-ins, harassment, and “false accusations.”
In 2022, the senior police officer in charge of the case, Matt Longman, himself admitted that “trail hunting” was being used to “continue illegal hunting,” and considered the law unworkable.
At the beginning of the year, Scotland banned this practice, and the Labor opposition, the most likely candidate in the upcoming elections, promised to apply the same measure in England and Wales. Although dozens of rulings are issued every year – not exclusively related to fox hunting – the League Against Cruel Sports considers them “not reflective of reality,” because the law makes prosecutions difficult.
Philip Walters, an opponent of fox hunting for seven years, wonders: “If hunters have nothing to hide, why are some of them sometimes so violent?” He adds that he was subjected to “death threats” and received the remains of mice or foxes to intimidate him.
The owner of the lands where the hunting operation was taking place did not reach this point, but he started cursing the activist as he passed by.
Polly Portwin, campaign director at the Countryside Alliance, says that on weekends, the “vandals,” who say they number about 600, target about 25 of the 200 hunting clubs.
Portwine denounces the fact that they are “trying to control a herd,” adding: “It is as if you were driving a car and someone in the passenger seat was trying to control the steering wheel.”
Despite fatigue, after hours of running through forests, paths and fields with their shoes heavy with the sticky ground, the “saboteurs” strive not to lose track of the herd, which they also monitor from the air using a drone. The nature of the barking from afar suggests that hunters and their dogs are tracking a fox. Then night falls and the hunters leave.
The “saboteurs” for their part enjoy the vegetarian sausage rolls and cakes and feel that they have done their duty, making sure that no fox is killed because they have not seen any dog with traces of blood. What pleased them most was that they saw 6 or 7 foxes that day, they say.
