Anti fox-hunting demonstrators protested outside the offices of Coillte yesterday in a bid to outlaw hunting through forest land.
The State-owned forestry company does not allow new fox hunts on their lands but has allowed existing hunts to continue. About three hunts have this right, according to Coillte.
Approximately 30 protesters held placards and chanted "animal abuse - no excuse" and "fox hunting - bloody murder" as Coillte staff left their offices for lunch.
Among the protesters were Ms Philomena Lynott, mother of the late rock singer Phil Lynott, and Popstars finalist Peter Smith.
Carrying a placard displaying a dead fox, Ms Lynott said she was demonstrating because she was an animal lover. "I can't understand how people can kill animals. I have eight foxes in my own garden at the moment."
The protest was just the start of a campaign to force Coillte to ban these hunts, said Ms Bernie Wright, spokeswoman for the Association of Hunt Saboteurs.
She said thousands of letters and e-mails of protest had already been sent to Coillte and she warned "direct action" would be the next step.
"We've had no response from Coillte, they are just fobbing us off," she said.
Past campaigns by the AHS involved the disruption of hunts, with some angry confrontations. Ms Wright said AHS would work with groups in Britain and Europe to help win their case.
"Forests should be a refuge for foxes. Instead they are being hunted down and killed. There is no earthly reason why a State business such as Coillte should sanction animal abuse."
Mr Paul Byrne, Coillte company secretary, said the organisation respected the right of people to protest but it could not make a statement on the rights or wrongs of fox hunting.
"Our policy is that we don't allow any new fox hunts on our lands," he said. "But where there is traditional usage of our lands - back before we owned it in some cases - we will allow that to continue."
Ms Wright said this was no excuse. "Tradition is no reason to allow animal abuse. Slavery was a tradition once and you don't hear anyone asking to preserve it because of that."
Mr Byrne said the banning of fox hunting was a matter for Government and law. "If it is to be banned, we will comply with it but we are not going to make the law," he said.
