• Constitutional Court said ready to overturn Catalan law banning bullfighting
• Animal-rights activists mobilize with petitions, call for nationwide protests
Animal rights activists have sounded the alarm over an expected decision within the next two weeks by Spain’s Tribunal Constitucional (‘Constitutional Court’) that would overturn a 2010 law passed by the regional parliament of Catalonia, banning bullfighting in the region on the basis of its being incompatible with Catalan culture and tradition.
The 2010 ban on bullfighting by the Catalan Parlament was slated for debate by the Constitutional Court on Tuesday, with a firm majority of Justices said to be all but decided that it oversteps the regional parliaments authority and violates Spain’s federal Constitution. While accounts of what occurred differ, it appears the Court agreed to postpone debate and a decision on the Catalonia bullfighting law until its next meeting in two weeks time.
Animal rights activists immediately launched a campaign of protest, including an online petition at Change.org sponsored by Anima Naturalis and call for national protests by animal-rights party PACMA, the first of which is to be held on Friday, 7th October at 7pm in front of old Plaza Monumental bullring in Barcelona.
If the Catalan law is overturned by the courts, it could set a precedent for revoking similar laws in the Balearic Islands, the Canary Islands and various municipalities around the country. While the supporters of bullfighting claim it as the national Sport and part of Spain’s ‘culture’, a nationwide Ipsos-Mori poll released in early 2016 showed that 58 percent of all Spaniards oppose bullfighting and 84 percent of Spanish youth aged 16-24 express little or no pride in the idea of bullfighting as Spain’s national pastime.
► CLICK HERE TO SIGN PETITION AT CHANGE.ORG ►
► CLICK HERE TO READ ABOUT PACMA CALL FOR PROTESTS ►
► Read More in Spanish at El Periódico, La Vanguardia and 20minutos …
