• Supreme Court ruling says 2010 Catalan law cannot ban bullfighting altogether
• Regional government vows strict regulations to make bullfighting impossible
The regional government of Spain’s northeastern region of Catalonia has defiantly responded to a Supreme Court ruling that overturns a 2010 ban on bullfighting in the region, saying it will ensure that regional and local licensing, health and safety regulations are increased so as to make bullfighting a practical impossibility in the region.
Josep Rull, the minister for Territory and Sustainability in the Catalan Generalitat told reporters the day after the Supreme Court ruling that “we’ve already decided and will do everything possible so that bullfighting does not make a reappearance” in Catalonia, adding that Catalans “want a country in which it’s not possible to make a public spectacle out of the death and suffering of an animal.”
The Supreme Court ruling in a vote of 8-3 handed down Thursday found that the 2010 Catalan ban on bullfighting assumes jurisdiction in the area of “culture” that is the sole competency of the Spanish federal government. Because the Spanish state has declared bullfighting an activity of “national patrimony,” the Catalans may only regulate bullfighting to protect the safety and well-being of the animals, but may not prohibit bullfighting as an activity altogether.
► Read More in Spanish at La Vanguardia and El Mundo …
► Read More in English at The Guardian and BBC News …
