BLOOD SPORT BULLFIGHTING IS BANNED BY COLOMBIAN LAWMAKERS

Wed 29 May 2024:

Colombia’s Congress has approved a bill banning bullfighting.

On Tuesday, lawmakers passed the bill with a vote of 93-2. Activists have long campaigned to end the controversial blood sport, a centuries-old colonial tradition in Colombia.

The ban will be implemented gradually over three years, during which the state will be required to help find alternative employment for the tens of thousands of people who are directly or indirectly involved in the bullfighting industry.

Reporting from Bogota, Al Jazeera’s Alessandro Rampietti said the bill had been greenlighted after “years of strenuous political battles”.

The once popular tradition, introduced by Spanish colonisers, had been “losing fans in recent years” and had turned into a “pastime for a small elite”, he said.

Juan Carlos Losada, a lawmaker with the Liberal Party, told Al Jazeera that the ban would enable the country to re-evaluate the “culture of violence” it had inherited.

“The next generations will grow up in a country where culture will define things much more creatively than torturing animals for the amusement of a few insensitive people,” he said.

However, bullfighting enthusiasts argue that the ban infringes on minority freedoms and poses problems for cities where these events attract thousands of visitors.

Bullfighting used to be a popular event in Colombia, often broadcast live on multiple TV networks. However, changing views on animal welfare have led to increased scrutiny and a growing perception that it is unacceptable to make an animal suffer for entertainment.

In 2018, the Constitutional Court acknowledged bullfights as part of Colombia’s cultural heritage. Despite this, Bogotá, one of the oldest bullfighting cities in the Americas, has banned the injuring or killing of bulls, and Medellín has also imposed restrictions.

The practice remains popular in cities like Cali and Manizales, with around 300 events held annually at about 70 locations in Colombia, according to Paloma.

Bullfighting originated in the Iberian Peninsula and remains legal in seven other countries: Ecuador, France, Mexico, Peru, Portugal, Spain, and Venezuela.

Several other countries in the region, including Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, and Guatemala, have banned the blood sport.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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