Rafaela Dimitriadi
Poachers in Cyprus are estimated to make more than €10 million in profits each year. Both the enormous sums involved and the cases presented before the House Environment Committee suggest that existing penalties are failing to act as an effective deterrent.
Complaints about hunters being harassed by activists, as well as the continuing problem of poaching, dominated the committee’s renewed discussion on “the impact of the activities of certain environmental activist organizations and individual activists, and whether measures are needed to address the issue.”
The committee also added a discussion on the operation and further strengthening of the Anti-Poaching Unit, along with the need for more effective measures to prevent and combat poaching.
Serious poaching cases
Referring to the scale of the problem, Game and Fauna Service head Pantelis Hadjigerou said tough measures were needed.
Among other things, he proposed freezing offenders’ assets, banning them from owning firearms, and taking away their driving licenses. DISY MP Andreas Constantinou also supported the freezing of assets.
Hadjigerou said the same offenders were repeatedly being caught. He referred to one particular group of poachers who allegedly go out almost every night to hunt hares.
“They have been reported for years, and they do not stop,” he said.
He also said there was a gap in the law regarding the harassment of hunters, warning that “we will end up mourning victims.”
Seven bird-trapping reports in one year
AKEL MP Nikos Kettiros pointed to one case involving a repeat offender who had been reported seven times for trapping birds and was fined €13,500, yet allegedly continued operating.
Just three days earlier, on Sept. 20, 2026, nets containing dead birds were reportedly found on the person’s property. Kettiros added that the man paid the fine in cash.
The discussion indicated that the penalties being imposed and the option of paying them in instalments are not stopping repeat offenders.
Assistant Police Chief for Border Protection Michalis Katsounotos said many offenders deliberately avoid paying their fixed penalties so their cases are taken to court, where they may be allowed to settle the amount through instalments.
“This is something you, as the legislative body, must examine,” he told MPs.
Katsounotos said police carry out systematic checks but described it as a particularly difficult year for the force because of the EU presidency and measures introduced in response to foot-and-mouth disease.
“The Anti-Poaching Unit may not currently have sufficient personnel, but there is scope to strengthen it,” he said.
Complaints involving activist group CABS
ELAM MP and committee chair Linos Papayiannis presented examples of alleged harassment of hunters by members of the activist group CABS. He said he intended to hand evidence to police.
In one case, Papayiannis said, a CABS member appearing as a witness at Famagusta District Court was asked whether he was being paid and replied that he was.
“When he was asked what he would do if poaching stopped in Cyprus, he replied that he would be left without a job,” Papayiannis said.
In another case, a different CABS member was also reportedly asked whether he was being paid and answered yes.
Papayiannis also referred to a complaint alleging that a person had been monitored using a drone and four cameras placed around the area.
‘We know who the poachers are’
“Anyone who commits an offense must face the penalties provided by law,” Terra Cypria Executive Director Koulla Michael said.
However, she argued that any organization working to improve the enforcement of the law “should be protected, not targeted.”
Michael said the major poachers making vast sums of money appear to control criminal networks and trap both protected and huntable species.
“There are no more than five to 10 of them, and we know who they are,” she said.
‘They monitor people and enter private property’
Paralimni Deputy Mayor Kleanthis Koutsouftas spoke of people allegedly entering private properties and conducting surveillance, causing fear among residents.
“Is it normal for an activist group to take the law into its own hands and behave like a law enforcement authority?” he asked.
He also said environmental organizations could not hold the same status or authority as the relevant state services.
Michael reacted strongly to his comments.
“What we heard from the Paralimni deputy mayor was a challenge to the very existence of environmental organizations," she said. “When Paralimni Municipality needed help to prevent an environmental disaster, we worked without payment.”
Environmental groups concluded by saying they felt they were being targeted simply because the issue had been placed before the committee.
