NEW laws which encourage children as young as 14 to handle firearms have provoked an outcry among child protection groups.
It comes after an initiative to promote hunting amongst children was approved in Valencia.
It is part of a growing trend of hunting federations entering schools to promote the activity.
In Andalucia, the Junta facilitated the participation of more than 90 schools in a project promoted by the Andalusian Hunting Federation.
Meanwhile in Extremadura, a regional program which introduces hunting activities to primary school children has been launched.
Spain allows children aged 14 and over to use firearms for hunting and sport shooting.
Five provinces (The Canary Islands, Castilla and Leon, Valencia, Galicia and the Basque Country) even all allow small children and newborn babies to attend hunts – although they are not permitted to participate.
Local child protection group, the CoPPA (Coordinator of Professionals for the Prevention of Abuse), has campaigned against these laws.
A spokesperson from CoPPA told The Olive Press that the public are ‘perplexed’ and ‘confused’ by the laws which they call ‘a clear contradiction’.
“How is it possible that there is legislation that protects children from a wide variety of risks and dangers to their physical and psychological integrity and at the same time allows them to be exposed to such an obvious danger as access to firearms?” they asked.
The group raised the issue with the UN Committee for children’s rights which met in Geneva on January 22 to discuss the controversial laws.
Describing the legislation as a ‘danger to children’, the Committee urged the Spanish government to consider ‘prohibiting the access, participation and presence of children in hunting activities that involve firearms’.
The campaign, supported by PP and Vox, aims to promote hunting in schools.
A Vox representative said that hunting is an activity linked to ‘environmental conservation and ecological balance’.
A PSOE representative described the proposal as ‘preposterous’ and denounced it as ‘an attempt to bring weapons into classrooms’.
“Isn’t putting young people in danger by putting weapons in their hands and normalizing killing a form of indoctrination?” she asked
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