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Koblenz (dpa / lrs) - The Koblenz Administrative Court has upheld the lawsuit of two vegetarians who want to prohibit hunting on their property for ethical reasons.
As the court announced on Tuesday, the couple owned a large number of partly non-contiguous areas within a hunting district in the north of Rhineland-Palatinate.
The couple had applied to the responsible district administration to pacify their property under hunting law.
Among other things, the couple had argued that they had been vegetarian since 1986 and, for reasons of conscience, could not bear it when animals were chased by drivers and dogs and killed by hunters on the property.
After the district initially rejected the application, the Koblenz Administrative Court now agreed that the owners were right.
The spouses would have the right to have their property declared pacified under hunting law.
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It is true that game does not stop at property boundaries, which is why the Federal Hunting Act provides for area-wide hunting of all areas belonging to a hunting district.
Nonetheless, real estate can be declared pacified under hunting law if hunting is credibly rejected for ethical reasons, the judges argue.
"During their questioning in front of the court, the plaintiffs had clearly demonstrated their inner attitude towards the practice of hunting and convinced the court that their refusal to hunt was based on a decision of conscience," the administrative court said.
The verdict is not yet legally binding.
© dpa-infocom, dpa: 210504-99-466667 / 3