May 14, 2010
World Watches Catalonia as International Anti-Bullfighting Campaigners Say ‘Enough’
Animal welfare campaigners are set to meet Catalonian President Ernest Benach on Monday 17th May 2010 when they will present him with an open letter signed by hundreds of anti-bullfighting groups from around the world.
The letter will strengthen growing calls for Catalonian MPs to vote for a proposed bullfighting ban in the Catalonian parliament next month. Campaigners will also hand over a dossier of international press cuttings reporting on a ban on bullfighting.
“We want to remind Benach and his colleagues that the world will be watching them when they decide whether or not to end the cruelty and lead Spain into the 21st century,” said Marius Kolff, Director of CAS International.
The three campaigners planning to present Benach with the dossier and letter represent CAS International (Comite Anti Stierenvechten), Humane Society International (HSI) and the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA).
Tension has been rising since a close vote in December 2009 saw 67 Catalonian MPs vote to discuss the ban in parliament, with 59 against, after 180,000 Catalan citizens signed a petition demanding legislation. Next month’s vote will make or break the ban.
Recent polls have shown 80 per cent of Catalonia’s 7 million citizens have no interest in bullfighting, and only one fifth of the seats at Barcelona’s bullring were occupied at the start of this bullfighting season. Yet a small minority argue that the cruel and inhumane tradition should be kept alive.
One hundred bulls are slaughtered in the ring in Catalonia each year, dying a slow, painful and terrifying death. But in the last two years, Catalan local authorities including Barcelona have declared their support for the ban, along with many other towns and regions across Europe and Latin America.
- Currently, Catalan animal protection laws protect all animals except the bulls and horses used in bullfights.
- The three campaigners are Marius Kolff (CAS), Jo Swabe (HSI) and Helen Martinez (WSPA).
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