Madrid rally against bullfighting draws thousands of protestors
Posted 30th May 2018
The ‘Bullfighting is Violence’ demonstration highlighted the terrible cruelty inflicted in the name of a ‘sport’, which sees men on foot and horseback torment, injure and then kill bulls with a sword thrust into the heart.
Luis Calvo, from the League Against Cruel Sports, took part in the demonstration:
“The rally attracted people of all age groups, from children through to pensioners, and they came from every corner of the country including regions where bullfighting is banned.
“This was a chance to show that opposition to bullfighting is stronger than ever. Now more people in Spain oppose bullfighting than support it.
“An online poll by Ipsos MORI found that 58% of people aged 16-65 opposed bullfighting compared to only 19% who supported it.”
The rally was organised by the group Tauromaquia Es Violencia or TeV (Bullfighting is Violence) and supported by 165 separate organisations from across Spain and overseas.
Organisers called on the Spanish Government to stop subsidising the ‘sport’ – in 2013 it had declared that bullfighting was a ‘national cultural heritage’ which could be supported by taxpayers’ money and in 2017 it reduced VAT on bullfighting.
Laura Gonzalo, a spokeswoman for TeV, said:
“It is backwards that, in the 21st century, animals are still being tortured for fun and that it’s being financed with public money.”
Organisers also called for the strengthening of Spanish animal protection laws and the banning of bullfighting ‘spectacles’ such as the Pamplona Bull Run.
They also pointed towards official bullfighting industry figures from 2017 indicating this cruel ‘sport’ is in decline.
- In the period 2007-2017 traditional bullfighting in rings decreased by 57.5% – in 2007 there were 3,651 bullfights in bullrings but by 2017 this figure had dropped to 1,553.
- 76% of Spanish bullrings are no longer used for bullfighting.
Luis Calvo, said:
“The good news is that bullfighting is in decline but sadly many animals are still effectively being tortured and then killed.
“One of the most moving parts of the rally featured a performance in which 500 people broke banderillas, the traditional lances used to stab bulls, and released a cloud of red dust and smoke to symbolize the blood of the 20,000 bulls, cows and calves killed in bullrings and other bullfighting activities in Spain every year.”
Follow the campaign to end bullfighting at #TauromaquiaEsViolencia
Petition
The League is encouraging members of the public to sign their petition titled ‘stop the killing of animals by hunts in the UK’. Full details can be found here.
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