01.11.14 - Hit Report: Sabs swiftly found the Waveney Harriers parked up at Mettingham Castle. They were joined by four police vehicles and nine police officers, including our old friend Mark Bryant (wild life officer). Were not implying any police bias of course but it makes one wonder what relationship the police and hunt have when the police are parked up between horse boxes doesnt it? By 11am the hunt had set out, followed by a miniscule 10 to 15 field in tow, riding southward towards Mettingham Wood where they holed up for several minutes. Occasional cries and horns could be heard but due to a lack of road or footpath access it was impossible for sabs to get close to the action, relying on shouting and filming instead. Curiously the drag was nowhere to be seen. The first real adrenaline rush of the day came during a flurry of hound and police activity behind a tall row of hedge that made it difficult for sabs to completely understand what was happening. A police 4x4 looked on and did little else as the hounds were clearly in cry. Thankfully the hounds were spotted soon after with clean faces, implying either they were unsuccessful or the hunter had the good sense to prevent killing in full view of police being watched by sabs. Several hours of chasing the hunt ensued around the Mettingha, Shipsmeadow, and Bungay area ensued. Having only two cars and five sabs tracking across an area with little road or pathway access made it difficult but sabs perservered and maintained contact with the hunt for the entire day despite police interference. Two police vehicles and five police officers pulled over one of the sab cars for having a rear brake light that did not work. Two cars, five officers(!!). During this time the police officer that spoke continued to use standard tactics of implying something is a legal requirement when it is not. The officer backed down after being called out on his bullshit. A curious aside to this incident is that 20 minutes previous to the car being pulled over a hunt supporter had told the driver that she should not leave her car unattended and smiled and winked. By the polices own admission the brake light had been working earlier in the day. Just a coincidence? By the end of the day it had become something of a standoff, with the police presence having largely retreated back to Mettingham Castle where they stood around chatting with the field. The hunt itself continued to circle around the Manor Farm and Mettingham Wood area, with Sabs maintaining as close an eye as possible across the fields. Even without land access there are always ways to zone in on the hunt. Eventually the huntsmen and hounds returned to the meet and proceeded to undertake the callous ritual of returning animals into holding pens until Wednesday. To end, an amusing anecdote. The aforementioned independent observer had their car blocked on the road by a rider on horseback. This quickly escalated into an argument between the driver and rider, with sabs on hand to film and ensure that the observer did not get attacked. During the argument the driver said that horses should not be blocking traffic on the road, which is indeed what the law says. The response from the rider was that horses are allowed on the road because they were here before cars. The driver was as stunned as the sab. After all, werent foxes here before hunters?
Posted on: Fri, 07 Nov 2014 11:08:27 +0000
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