Spain’s left-wing government announced on Friday that will suppress the National Bullfighting Awarda measure applauded by animal defendersbut that irritated the fans of the shows bullfighting
“There is a majority of Spaniards (…) increasingly concerned” about animal welfare, so “we did not believe it was appropriate to continue maintaining an award that rewards a form of animal abuse,” explained the Minister of Culture, Ernest Urtasun. , on the La Sexta channel.
It is understood “even less than those forms of animal torture be awarded with medals that are also associated with monetary prizes and that, therefore, public money is dedicated to them,” the minister continued.
The annual award, created in 2011 under a previous socialist government and first awarded in 2013, awards 30,000 euros ($32,000) to the winner.
Renowned bullfighters such as Julián López, “El Juli”, and Enrique Ponce received him.
The bullfights They still have a passionate following in Spain and the main bullfighters are treated like celebrities.
But it is no longer a massive spectacle. Polls show growing disinterest across the country, especially among young people.
According to the latest figures available from the Ministry of Culture, during the 2021-22 season only 1.9 percent of Spaniards attended a bullfight.
The conservative Popular Party, the main opposition party, promised to restore the award if it returns to power.
“The bullfighting “It is an activity that in Spain is part of our culture, of our traditions, (…) of our own identity as a people”, and the suppression of the award shows “the sectarianism of those who govern us”, the parliamentary spokesperson criticized before journalists. of the PP, Miguel Tellado.
Given the decision, several regional governments, including one led by the socialists, announced that they will create their own bullfighting prizes.
The Fighting Bull Foundation, an NGO that promotes bullfights in Spainstated in a statement that the government “has the obligation to promote and encourage all cultural manifestations, among which is bullfighting.”
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“This measure marks a milestone in the fight against bullfightinga controversial practice,” the animal rights association Animanaturalis welcomed on its side.