Bulls on parade

THE organisers behind a bullfighting spectacle that counted the teenage daughter of a royal princess in attendance have been fined €20,000 for allowing a minor on the premises. 

Victoria, the 15-year-old daughter of the Infanta Elena, sister of the King, was filmed at the Palma bullring in summer, damning evidence that the organisers had let children in despite local laws banning under-16s. 

An estimated 150 children watched the show and the fine was the highest penalty possible. It comes at a sensitive time for the age-old tradition considered nothing short of torture by many. 

Bullfighting was all set to be banned across the Balearics, with political support from Mes, Podemos and the PSOE. This summer was supposed to be the last bullfighting season in history. 

A recent ruling, however, from the Spanish constitutional court threw a spanner in the works by declaring Catalonia’s ban to be illegitimate. Where the law goes from here remains to be seen but the penalty is the Balearic government’s only way of nailing its colours to the mast.