Bullfighting : Cruelty NOT Culture

Source.

Lately there has been a lot of focus on the banning of wild animals in circuses, it seems an ideal opportunity to think about another instance of animal abuse for entertainment purposes - bullfighting.  This, believe it or not, is still very much in existence and Humane Society International have calculated it being responsible for the death of up to 250,000 animals worldwide each year.

People who support bullfighting are hoping to have this "sport" protected by listing it as a form of cultural heritage, in fact politicians in both France and Spain have voted on this issue very recently.  The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) has the job of preserving many forms of genuine Intangible Cultural Heritage and if bullfighting was listed successfully by UNESCO it would not only give it a facade of respectability but could also mean that subsidies to financially safeguard the future of bullfighting may be made available.  

How to Help

We must let them know that we would never support or accept bullfighting along with any other act of animal cruelty as a practice worthy of Intangible Cultural Heritage.  Click here and enter your details in order to allow HSI to contact UNESCO on your behalf expressing concern at the distressing possibility of bullfighting becoming acceptable and respectable.

Spread the word!

VICTORY! Bull Fighting banned in Catalonia!

It is always nice to be able to share a small victory. Today I can share the great news with you that bull fighting has been banned in Catalonia (the north eastern region of Spain). Yesterday the Parliament of Catalonia's vote passed the motion to ban bull fighting by 68 votes to 55. Hopefully Catalonia is going to pave the way to outlawing this blood sport and the rest of Spain will follow.

The ban will be in force by 2012 but there is still work to do be done as each year around 11,000 bulls are killed due to the practice and we need to aim for a complete ban on bull fighting altogether.

Please spare a minute to click on this link and e-mail Prime Minister José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero and urge him to follow Catalonia's example and put an end to bull fighting across Spain.

Bullfighting.

The world has homed in on Spain for the past few weeks in the lead up to the World Cup Final which they won, I myself was in Spain last week (well, Tenerife) so it seems fitting to focus on Spain and to talk to you today about the Spanish equivilent of fox hunting - bullfighting. I noticed a lot of the souveniers over in Spain featured the silouhette of a bull and it made me think about bullfighting and how cruel and unecessary it is.

It amazes me how a human being would want to fight with a huge, horn weilding bull but apparently before entering the ring the bull may be subjected to a range of things such as being given laxatives and suffer beating to the kidneys to weaken him , fed anti inflammatory drugs to mask any injuries. Sometimes muscles in the neck are cut to prevent him lifting his head and also several inches of his horn maybe cut off impairing his coordination and ability to judge distances. Eyes are even smeared with petroleum jelly to blur vision. Not a fair fight at all.

I have found out more but it really is disturbing and in fact so stomach churning that many spectators leave before the end. Even buying a ticket to a bull fight fuels the industry so if you are in Spain then please don't go and watch a bullfight.

What can we do to help bulls? Sign this petition from Peta which asks the Spanish Prime Minister to completely ban bull fighting. If you have time edit the message and tell the Prime Minister how you feel about this.

Edit: When you sign the petition and hit submit it takes you directly to a donation page (this is optional) with some images you may find disturbing.