By Euro Weekly News Media • Published: 25 Jan 2016 • 13:34
FIGHTING BULL: ‘No justification for suffering’
MEMBERS of Villena’s bullfight enthusiasts’ club Peña Cultural Taurina Villenense are campaigning to hold bullfights in the local bullring.
Bullfighting is going through a hard time, they said, blaming the “leftist united front formed by three-party alliances that want to take away our freedom with their claims of animal cruelty.”
The association pointed out that Alicante City council wants to close the Bullfighting School despite having produced toreros like Villena-born Jose Palazon as well as novillero apprentices like Raul Bravo and Genaro Alvarez Forte who are also from Villena.
The campaigners hope to persuade Villena politicians to reconsider instead of “taking away our rights and the right to see the grand masters of tauromachia at our bullring.”
Esther Esquembre of the Los Verdes (Greens) party is also councillor for Animal Policies and was taken by surprise by the association’s proposal. The local government is in the hand of a three-party coalition between Los Verdes, PSOE and VCD and Esquembre pointed out that Villena residents had voted for parties that opposed bullfighting.
“We do not want a return to the Spain of the Fifties,” she said. “Democracy means demonstrating that these events are not positive because there is no justification for what the bull suffers during the fight.”
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I remember by the age of 14 I had seen 2 bullfights, taken by my Father. The first was not something I liked at all but to be honest I didn’t see any issue as I was young, but it wasn’t nice to watch. The second bullfight in Barcelona bullring installed a disgust in me that I have had ever since. We ended up about 2 rows from the front as far as I remember, the picador had just had his fun with the bull and then it came round in front of us, blood bubbling out of the large wound in its back and the gurgling sound of blood as its heart pumped blood from the wound.I really don’t think this is art, nor do I think it bravado, to me it is a cowardly way to kill such an impressive beast. One of the things that keeps this going and has been doing so for years is tourism, of course like everything else that is difficult to get rid there is a lot of money involved.One other thing that is not helping the ante bullfighting groups is the Spanish government who supports it financially because they class it as Spains national sport. Prime minister Mariano Rajoy has promised to push more money its way and to declare it a national patrimony… and the Spanish wonder why Spain is in the mess it is in when the political elite are in a mindset from the 50’s.I think it is a very sad person that can take enjoyment from killing an animal in this way, it is also a sad society we live in when it is allowed and even promoted freely by a European countries government, have we not come on a bit in the last 50 years?
agree whole heartdly I have only seen it on tv but myson went once and walked out – he did enjoy the bull runs though and seeing them myself I think they should be kept they make the fiesta’s to meKay
For once I agree with you Mike – wholeheartedly! There’s not much I dislike about Spain but bullfighting definitely comes top of my hate list. That such cruelty for the sake of ‘entertainment’ (it’s not sport) can still be allowed in the 21st century beggars belief.
Now that it looks like Rajoy will not be able to form a government – after the inconclusive result of last month’s election – and a coalition of the PSOE, Podemos and others may be on the horizon, perhaps that coalition may be more receptive to anti-bullfighting opinion. I certainly hope so.
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