FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 26, 2003
The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (O.F.A.H.) is a provincial, nonprofit, conservation organization, whose members are from many ethnic backgrounds (including aboriginal and nonaboriginal people), and all walks of life.
For O.F.A.H. members, hunting, fishing, and conservation are a way of life. We hunt and fish for many different reasons–for healthful food; for spiritual renewal; for personal challenge; and to rekindle relations with friends and family. For most, hunting and fishing is a celebration of our true relationship with nature–a relationship that depends first and foremost on conservation.
Our fish and wildlife conservation system is among the most successful anywhere in the world. Fish and wildlife populations have been protected and restored over the last 100 years, because, until recently, most fishing and hunting have been strictly licensed and controlled so that over two million licensed anglers, and 500,000 hunters have no negative impact on fish and wildlife populations. The cultural, social, economic and heritage values of hunting and fishing in Ontario are immense, and fishing and hunting license revenues fund most of the fish and wildlife management and habitat enhancement in this province.
The O.F.A.H. believes that all Canadians have the right to hunt and fish, subject to conservation, safety, and priority allocation to aboriginal peoples. Aboriginal peoples include the Indian, Inuit and M