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LA PROHIBICIÓN DE LAS CORRIDAS DE TOROS EN CATALUÑA VISTA POR LA PRENSA INTERNACIONAL: Autor de la recopilación: Oriol Caudevilla DIARIO "CLARÍN" (ARGENTINA): En medio de la polémica, Cataluña prohibió las
corridas de toros
29/07/10 Será desde 2012. Los conservadores irán a la Corte en rechazo a la decisión.
En una votación que avivó una encendida polémica, el Parlamento catalán prohibió ayer
en esa región las corridas de toros, una de las tradiciones más enraizadas de la cultura
española. La decisión desató un feroz debate social y político que se extiende a toda
España y llegará seguramente al Congreso nacional, ya que los opositores a la medida,
que entrará en vigencia en 2012, anunciaron una amplia ofensiva para dejarla sin validez.
Mientras fuera del Parlamento se concentraban tanto los defensores de los animales como
los partidarios de esta fiesta nacional, los legisladores aprobaron por 68 votos a favor, 55
en contra y 9 abstenciones la iniciativa legislativa popular que impulsó la plataforma Prou!
(Basta) bajo el argumento de que las corridas son “una tortura” y un “maltrato evitable”, y
que contó con 180.000 firmas, 130.000 más de las necesarias para llegar al Parlamento
regional.
Cataluña es entonces la segunda región española en prohibir las corridas de toros en su
territorio, luego de Canarias, que lo hizo en 1991. La región catalana, que fue cuna y
referencia de “la Fiesta” de los toros, termina así con siglos de tradición, aunque se
mantendrán los “correbous” –festejos con toros a los que se prende fuego en las astas
aunque no son sacrificados– a los que no afecta esta iniciativa.
El debate, que captó fuerte interés por parte de la prensa local y extranjera, comenzó en
diciembre y provocó fuertes enfrentamientos entre los defensores y los detractores de esta
fiesta tradicional.
Los choques se profundizaron cuando algunos sectores de la derecha española
planteaban que la discusión se debía, en realidad, a una cuestión “identitaria” , por el
sentimiento nacionalista en Cataluña, algo que siempre fue negado por los “abolicionistas”.
El respaldo mayoritario del grupo nacionalista catalán Convergencia y Unión, y de
Izquierda Republicana de Cataluña y de Iniciativa por Cataluña Verdes, hizo posible la
prohibición, que debería aplicarse desde el 1 de enero de 2012.
Votaron en contra el conservador Partido Popular (PP) y Ciudadanos, así como la mayoría
de diputados del Partido Socialista de Cataluña, tras deliberaciones en las que los
abolicionistas intentaron alejarse de la acusación de los defensores de las corridas, que
era la de terminar “con el signo de identidad español”.
El presidente del gobierno regional, José Montilla, votó en contra de la prohibición. “Creo
en la libertad”, argumentó. Además lamentó “las pretensiones de los que han querido
hacer de esto un termómetro de la relación Cataluña–España”, atravesada por el reciente
rechazo del Tribunal Constitucional de algunos puntos del Estatuto de autonomía, como el
que refería a la región catalana como una “nación”.
En la vereda opuesta, el presidente de Izquierda Republicana, Joan Puigcercós, afirmó:
“Se ha querido buscar una confrontación (con España) que no es tal. Hay que enviar un
mensaje al mundo de que la sociedad catalana evoluciona. Votamos a favor del respeto a
la vida y el rechazo de las torturas, por el progreso moral”.
Pero el PP, principal partido de la oposición en España, anunció su propósito de dejar sin
efecto la prohibición en las Cortes Generales españolas.
Pedirá en el Congreso “que se regule por ley” que las corridas sean “fiesta de interés
cultural general” en todo el país, para que los Parlamentos regionales “no tengan
capacidad para prohibir” estos festejos.
“No se pueden poner cuestiones identitarias sobre los derechos de los ciudadanos”,
manifestó el presidente del PP, Mariano Rajoy.
Las reacciones también llegaron desde el gobierno de José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, que
expresó su respeto por la decisión de la Cámara autonómica, pero insistió en que no es
partidario de una prohibición de estas características.
También el mundo de los toreros salió a protestar, con el argumento de que la decisión
cercena la libertad. Y mencionaron las pérdidas económicas que significará la abolición de
esta fiesta que convoca a millones de seguidores.
Indignación y tristeza entre los toreros
Los toreros españoles expresaron indignación y tristeza por la prohibición de las corridas
en Cataluña. Uno de los referentes más importantes que ha tenido el toreo, Manuel
Benítez “El Cordobés”, recibió la noticia con amargura, “hasta con ganas de llorar, porque
es una pena que destruyan lo que funciona”, señaló a la agencia EFE. Benítez, ídolo de
multitudes mientras estuvo activo, lamentó además el daño que esto causará a las familias
que “se ganan la vida muy honradamente”.
El valenciano Enrique Ponce, uno de los máximos exponentes del toreo actual, expresó
“gran indignación e impotencia por lo ocurrido”. La prohibición, dijo, es “una coacción a la
libertad de los seres humanos precisamente por quienes hace 40 años abogaban por ella”.
En tanto, defensores de los animales celebraron la votación en el Parlamento catalán.
También festejó la actriz francesa Brigitte Bardot, que habló de una “victoria de la
democracia” y “de la dignidad sobre la crueldad”.
DIARIO "PERTH NOW" (AUSTRALIA): Spanish region in bullfighting ban first
LAWMAKERS in Catalonia have voted to ban
bullfighting - becoming the first region in mainland Spain to act against the
centuries-old tradition.
The ban was approved with 68 votes in favor and 55 against and will come into force on
January 1, 2012.
The motion - which was being watched closely across Spain - tightens the region's animal
protection law to remove an exception for bullfights.
The vote came after animal rights activists campaigning under the platform "Prou!" "Enough!" in the Catalan language - collected 180,000 signatures for a petition calling for
the assembly to decide on the ban.
Catalonia, whose capital Barcelona is Spain's second-largest city, has followed the lead of
the Canary Islands in the Atlantic which made bullfighting illegal in 1991.
DIARIO "SIDNEY MORNING HERALD" (AUSTRALIA): Barcelona says adios to bullfighting
JOSEPH WILSON AND DANIEL WOOOLLS
July 28, 2010 - 8:49PM
AP
Parliamentarians in Catalonia have outlawed bullfighting, becoming Spain's first mainland
region to do so after a heated debate that pitted the rights of animals against preserving a
pillar of traditional culture.
Cheers broke out in the local 135-seat legislature after the speaker announced the ban had
passed 68-to-55 with nine abstentions. The ban in the northeastern coastal region including
Barcelona will take effect in 2012.
Catalonia is a powerful, wealthy region with its own language and culture and a large
degree of self-rule. Many in Spain have seen the pressure here for a bullfighting ban as a
further attempt by Catalonia to stand out from the rest of the country.
The centre-right Popular Party, which is fervent about the idea of Spain as a unified country
run from Madrid - and also supports bullfighting - said it is considering filing suit to overturn
the ban.
The practical effect of the ban will be limited: Catalonia has only one functioning bullring, in
Barcelona, while another disused one is being turned into a shopping mall. It stages 15
fights a year which are rarely sold out, out of a nationwide total of roughly 1000 events a
season.
Still, bullfighting buffs and Spanish conservatives have taken the drama very seriously,
seeing a stinging anti-Spanish rebuke in the grassroots, anti-bullfighting drive that started
last year.
The result will energise animal rights groups bent on seeking bans in other regions of
Spain.
The first Spanish region to outlaw bullfighting was the Canary Islands, in 1991. But fights
were never that popular there and when the ban took effect there had not been a bullfight
for seven years. That makes the Catalonia vote a much more potent case, even if
bullfighting is not as popular there as it is in Madrid or down south in Andalusia.
As debate got under way in Barcelona, protesters from both camps rallied outside the
parliament building.
Bullfighting opponents carried posters with gory pictures of bleeding animals. One man
covered in fake red blood carried a sign in English, "Stop animal cruelty, No more blood."
Pro-bullfighting groups carried signs painted on the red and yellow Catalan flag, with
slogans such as Libertad y Toros (Freedom and bulls).
The two groups traded taunts and heckled each other.
DIARIO "THE DAILY TELEGRAPH" (versión CANADÁ): Catalonia becomes first Spanish region to ban
bullfighting
By Fiona Govan, The Daily Telegraph
Catalonia has voted to become the first Spanish region to ban bullfighting, striking a blow to
aficionados of the most emblematic and controversial of Spanish traditions.
The Catalan regional parliament Wednesday outlawed the spectacle on the grounds of
cruelty in a move that animal rights activists hope will be repeated across Spain.
Campaigners hailed the ban, which was passed by 68 votes to 55 with nine abstentions, as
a historic victory and claimed that it signalled the beginning of the end of Spain's "national
fiesta".
It comes at a time of strife for Spain's bullfighting industry, which has been hit hard by
falling attendance and the deepening economic crisis.
Deborah Parris, a spokesman for the anti-bullfighting group Prou! (Enough!), said: "Today
five centuries of cruelty have ended because the people of Catalonia wanted it. They
recognized that, whatever the tradition, it was cruel and had no place in the 21st century."
The group, which forced the vote after presenting a petition signed by 180,000 Catalan
citizens to the parliament in Barcelona, issued a statement saying: "It has created a
precedent that we hope will be replicated in other democratic parliaments, in those regions
and countries where such cruel bullfights are still allowed."
Interest in bullfighting has been on the wane in the north-eastern region since its heyday in
the 1950s and only one of Barcelona's three bullrings still stages corridas - bullfights although it too struggles to fill the seats.
At an average bullfight, staged on Sundays during the summer months at the Plaza de
Toros Monumental in the centre of Barcelona, barely a third of the 19,000 seats are sold.
Tourists brought by bus from the Costa Brava often outnumber locals.
Across the rest of Spain, where leading matadors command the same respect and
attention as footballers, bullfighting is still popular, especially in Madrid and Andalusia.
But recent years have seen a change in attitude, marked by a fall in attendance and state
television dropping its live broadcasts of top bullfights.
Last year the number of bullfights staged nationwide fell to 1,848 from 2,622 in 2008.
The 29.5 per cent fall is largely attributed a cut in spending as town halls tighten belts
during the recession.
Aficionados of bullfighting, which is not considered a sport in Spain and instead is covered
in the culture pages of daily newspapers, insist that it is an artistic expression that must be
allowed to continue.
"It's not a cruel show. Completely the opposite. It's a show that creates art: where you get
feelings and a fight between a bull and person, where the person or the bull can lose their
life," argued Serafin Marin, a matador.
Others said the ban had little to do with a desire to stop cruelty and had been used by
Catalan separatists seeking political gains.
"The formal reason behind this measure is to stop cruelty to animals but the reality is that
political parties are using it to erase something they see as emblematic of Spain," said
Albert Rivera, 30, the leader of the non-nationalist Catalan Citizens Party.
"It is another step to mark out Catalonia as distinct from Spain."
The ban will be introduced from Jan 1, 2012. The centre-right Popular Party, which
supports bullfighting, said
the ban constituted an attack on liberty and added that it would file a suit to overturn the
ban.
Those who work in the bullfighting industry in Catalonia have warned that they face losses
of 400 million euros ($538 million Cdn) and have said they could sue the region's
government for denying them a means to earn a living.
DIARIO "CHINA DAILY BEIJING" (CHINA):
Spain's Catalonia votes to outlaw bullfighting
(Agencies)
Updated: 2010-07-29 09:07
Catalonia, a region of northeastern Spain with a strong separatist movement, will become
the first part of the country's mainland to outlaw the centuries-old tradition. It has been
banned in the Canary Islands for some years.
The ban was pushed by animal rights activists who want it extended across the entire
country, but some Spaniards saw the vote as having more to do with Catalonia's drive to
cut Madrid's political influence than with the protection of animals.
VICENTE ESTEBAN, Madrid, 63, taxi driver
"It's a real shame, it's been our national festival forever. People don't have to go to the
bullring and if they don't like animals to die they better not eat meat either. Every living thing
suffers." Esteban goes to bullfights several times a year and fears the ban could catch on in
other provinces.
SARA LUBRERAS, Plencia, Basque Country, 33
"I think this decision is fantastic. At this stage of the 21st century, this is a horrible abuse of
animals and appalling that we can call animal-suffering a festival.
"I couldn't eat meat knowing that the animal had been killed while people applauded its
death. I'd be capable of becoming a vegetarian."
PACO CARMONA, Madrid, former bullfighter and trainer
"I'm one more you can add to those who believe that this is a political issue ... Bullfighting
has been used politically from the Second Republic to (former dictator Francisco) Franco
(...) and the truth is it's not as cruel as it's made out to be..."
UNNAMED ACTIVIST, outside Barcelona parliament
"We are very happy that reason and compassion won against
barbarism. We have been working for many years toward this."
FERNANDO MASEDO, Badajoz, Extremadura, head of the International Federation of
Bullfighting schools
"There are other types of abuse that aren't under attack... The Catalans voted how they did
just because this is something Spanish." He added that he did not foresee similar moves in
other regions of Spain.
SIRA BILBAO, El Madrid, Asturias, 46, businesswoman
"The art of bullfighting isn't an art when there's blood involved. They could go through the
whole ritual without killing the bull. There are traditions that have to adapt to current times.
Look at women in the workforce."
LUIS VILLANUEVA, Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz,
"It really hurts because we'd gone a long time with no prohibitions. I feel really bad for the
fans in Barcelona, which is a great bullfighting city and now they'll have to go to France or
somewhere else to follow the sport." He said bullfighting survived religious and political
bans in the past.
ORIOL CAMPS, Reus, Catalonia, 34, notary
"People are obsessed with interpreting everything in Catalonia as a political divide. When
the Canary Islands banned bullfighting it was accepted that it was a people's movement.
This is a question of cruelty to animals."
GERARD PUJOL, Tarragona, 43, estate agent
"Finally, we've overcome this evil curse."
PACO DE CASAS, Jerez de la Frontera, Cadiz, 73, retiree
"It's ridiculous for bullfighting to be prohibited. Haven't they realized the number of jobs that
will be destroyed by this? And bulls are a classic part of Catalonia ... I can't understand this
decision."
PABLO GALLEGO, La Coruna, Galicia, 41, architect
"This is more about Catalonia wanting to separate itself from anything Spanish. Bullfighting
isn't a big part of Galician culture, but no one here is trying to prohibit it. It's something that
should be decided by people and not politicians." EVA MORENO, Valencia, 43, flamenco
dancer
"They're in their own right to prohibit it, but I don't think it reflects sentiment across the rest
of Spain. There's still a lot of bullfighting aficionados. It's part of our culture."
DIARIO "LOS ANGELES TIMES" (EEUU): After heated debate, Catalonia bans bullfighting
Defenders of the sport see it as a hallowed tradition, but opponents deem bullfighting
barbaric. Some see the move as an attempt to assert Catalan identity.
July 28, 2010|By Henry Chu, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
BARCELONA, Spain — The independence-minded region of Catalonia became the first on
the Spanish mainland to outlaw bullfighting Wednesday after impassioned debate.
Lawmakers in Catalonia's regional assembly approved the ban after emotional speeches
that mixed expressions of support for maintaining tradition with denunciations of bullfighting
as institutionalized cruelty.
The vote culminated a public initiative to ditch bullfighting that began more than years ago
and has drawn international media coverage. Backers of the ban erupted in cheers in the
assembly chamber's gallery.
But critics have assailed the campaign for a ban as a pretext for more nakedly political and
nationalist ends. They suspect the true motive is a desire to poke a stick in the eye of the
rest of Spain, an assertion of Catalan identity as different.
The assembly vote here in Barcelona, the regional capital, came during a mood of
heightened anger among Catalonians clamoring for more autonomy, if not outright
independence.
Earlier this month, Catalan nationalists put on one of the biggest demonstrations ever seen
in this sun-splashed part of northern Spain. The protest was fueled by outrage over a longawaited ruling by Spain's constitutional court that upheld most of Catalonia's charter on
greater self-rule but refused to recognize a legal basis for calling the region a "nation."
Conservatives say that getting rid of bullfighting further undermines Spanish unity, calling it
a gratuitous attack on one of the country's most hallowed traditions.
Advocates of the ban reject suggestions that their views or actions are a byproduct of
Catalan separatism. They see bullfighting not as a tradition steeped in romance but a
barbaric practice steeped in blood.
When the anti-bullfighting organization Prou (Catalan for "Enough") launched its petition
drive to put the issue before lawmakers, its goal was to clear the legal hurdle of 50,000
signatures; it wound up collecting 180,000.
Nonetheless, the issue was a sensitive one for Catalonian politicians, who are facing an
election later this year.
Before Wednesday's vote, bullfighting fans and foes gathered outside the parliament
building to press their case as lawmakers arrived to take their seats inside. One antibullfighting activist stripped himself naked, then poured a bucket of fake blood over himself
to encourage legislators to "stop animal cruelty."
DIARIO "THE NEW YORK TIMES" (EEUU):
Looking for Wedge From Spain, Catalonia Bans
Bullfighting
By RAPHAEL MINDER
Published: July 28, 2010
MADRID — Lawmakers in the northeastern Spanish region of Catalonia voted to ban
bullfighting on Wednesday, dealing the most significant blow so far to a tradition considered
by many Spaniards to be an essential part of their cultural patrimony.
In many ways, however, the ban reflected less on the animal rights than on a political
debate over Catalan identity and a push by local parties for greater independence from the
rest of Spain. With the strong support of separatist parties, the ban passed by a larger
margin than expected: 68 to 55, with 9 abstentions. It is to go into effect in 2012.
The ban — the first in mainland Spain — comes at a time of decline for bullfighting in real
terms, if not in emotional power. Reliant on state subsidies, bullfighting has suffered heavily
from forced cuts in public financing. The impact has been particularly felt in smaller towns,
where indebted local administrations have had to cancel bullfights, once the focus of
annual festivities. The number of such bullfighting fiestas has dropped by almost a third
from 2007.
The decline is particularly sharp in Catalonia, home to some of the country’s first
bullfighting societies and leading bullfighters. The main city, Barcelona, once operated
three bullrings to cater to a fanatic public. Now, there is just one bullring, La Monumental,
which attracts as few as 400 season-ticket holders. Madrid’s main, similarly sized bullring
draws 19,000.
Still, the ban was hailed as a major victory by animal welfare groups that have long
crusaded against what they consider to be a barbaric practice.
“This is a historic day for all those who have worked to promote animal rights in a modern
society like ours,” said José Ramón Mallén, a representative of Fundación Equanimal, an
animal rights organization. “This is not about politics and Catalan identity, but about ethics
and showing that it’s simply wrong to enjoy watching an animal getting killed in public.”
The vote came amid intense political bickering in the wake of a contested ruling last month
by Spain’s constitutional court on a Catalan autonomy charter, which has been approved
by Catalonia’s 5.5 million voters as well as the Spanish Parliament. The court endorsed
most of the charter but struck out a legal claim to nationhood, among other points that
Catalan separatists demanded.
The vote also came ahead of Catalan regional elections this year. Catalan separatism has
been gradually gaining ground since the late 1970s and the end of the Franco dictatorship.
The re-establishing of Catalan as an official language is arguably the separatists’ most
notable achievement so far.
The Catalan Parliament last month approved a law to have 50 percent of foreign movies
dubbed or subtitled in Catalan, despite concerns in Hollywood about higher distribution
costs.
One bullfighter, Vicente Barrera, criticized the ban as politically oriented. “Bullfighting is an
art, and Catalonia is abandoning for ridiculous political reasons the tradition and culture that
makes Spain so special,” he said.
While recognizing that such a ban suited their broader separation goals, some lawmakers
also emphasized that animal welfare had developed into a major concern.
“This is not an attack against Spain but evidence that we, Catalans, support and share
more advanced values with the rest of Europe,” said Josep Rull, a lawmaker from
Convergence and Union, a Catalan party. “We can be proud to have demonstrated today
that Catalonia has a more dignified and respectful society that believes in eliminating the
torture and suffering of animals.”
However, José Montilla, the head of the regional government, said he voted against the
ban and lamented the fact that the issue had been turned into “a thermometer” to measure
the state of the relationship between Catalonia and the rest of Spain.
Lawmakers from Spain’s largest center-right group, the Popular Party, led the opposition to
the ban, citing political, cultural as well as economic grounds. The party’s leading
spokesman and representative in the European Parliament, Jaime Mayor Oreja, said the
ban was proof of a separatist “assault” from Catalonia and reflected “the profound national
crisis that Spain is enduring.”
In the weeks leading to the Catalonia ban, there was fierce lobbying on both sides, with
supporters of bullfighting warning that they would take legal action against any move that
would breach basic rights — including the right to work — enshrined in the Spanish
Constitution. Some argued that a ban would be akin to prohibiting painting, because
bullfighters regularly receive national arts awards and their activities form part of the
cultural coverage of newspapers and other media.
Barcelona must now decide what to do with La Monumental, one of the world’s leading
bullrings. And the bullfighting sector is expected to try to claim hundreds of millions of
dollars to offset losses resulting from the ban — although that figure has been contested by
opponents of bullfighting.
The roster of famed Catalonian bullfighters includes Joaquín Bernadóa and Mario Cabré
(who also appeared with Ava Gardner in the 1951 film “Pandora and the Flying
Dutchman”).
DIARIO "LE FIGARO" (FRANCIA):
La corrida interdite en Catalogne à partir de
2012
Des anti-corridas manifestent devant le parlement catalan à Barcelone AFP PHOTO /
ALEJANDRO GARCIA Crédits photo : AFP
L'interdiction de la corrida a été votée au parlement catalan, après des débats houleux. La
région devient la deuxième d'Espagne à bannir la tauromachie, après l'archipel des
Canaries en 1991.
Le parlement autonome catalan a voté mercredi l'interdiction de la corrida, par 68 voix pour
et 55 contre. Neuf députés se sont abstenus. L'interdiction sera effective à partir du 1er
janvier 2012. La Catalogne devient la deuxième région espagnole à interdire ce spectacle,
après les îles Canaries en 1991.
A l'origine de ce vote, une « initiative législative populaire » réclamait la fin de ce spectacle
« barbare » et avait recueilli 180 000 signatures depuis l'année dernière. Pendant le débat
mercredi matin, des manifestants s'étaient rassemblés devant le parlement à Barcelone:
les amateurs de corridas réclamaient la « liberté », tandis que les opposants exigeaient la
fin de la « torture » animale. Ces derniers étaient également soutenus par des groupes
internationaux de défense des animaux. La Société mondiale pour la protection des
animaux (WSPA) avait ainsi transmis lundi au parlement catalan une lettre signée par
quelques 140 000 personnes.
«Patrimoine culturel»
En France, 58 députés de tous bords soutenaient leurs collègues catalans anti-corridas. Ils
ont signé une proposition de loi des députées Muriel Marland-Militello (UMP) et Geneviève
Gaillard (PS) qui vise à interdire aussi la corrida en France. Ardente défenseuse des
animaux, Brigitte Bardot a salué l'issue du scrutin catalan : «La corrida est d'un sadisme
incroyable, nous n'en sommes plus aux jeux du cirque et il faut mettre un terme immédiat à
cette torture animale », ajoutant que la France devait maintenant suivre l'exemple.
L'Alliance anti-corrida, basée à Nîmes, a aussi estimé que cette interdiction était « une
grande victoire, un vote symbolique qui préfigure ce qui va se passer en France dans
quelques années ».
En Espagne, les défenseurs de la corrida ont dénoncé les arrières pensées politiques du
débat, liées au régionalisme catalan. Pour certains médias espagnols comme ABC.es,
interdire la corrida dans ce contexte de revendication identitaire, c'est avant tout bannir de
Catalogne un symbole de la culture espagnole. Plusieurs régions, dont Madrid, envisagent
désormais d'inscrire la tauromachie à leur « patrimoine culturel » pour protéger cette
tradition. Et les pro-corridas ont dans leur camp un allié de poids : le roi Juan Carlos, qui a
réaffirmé son soutien à la cause il y a quelques semaines.
Cette interdiction est un coup dur pour la tauromachie espagnole qui génère quelques 40
000 emplois chaque année : elle intervient dans un contexte morose pour le secteur,
victime de la désaffection des spectateurs et de la crise économique
DIARIO "LE MONDE" (FRANCIA):
La Catalogne vote l'interdiction des corridas
28.07.10 | 09h27 • Mis à jour le 28.07.10 | 13h46
Victoire historique pour les opposants à la tauromachie. Les députés du Parlement régional
de Catalogne, dans le nord-est de l'Espagne, ont approuvé l'interdiction des corridas, par
68 voix pour et 55 contre. La Catalogne devient ainsi la deuxième région d'Espagne à
interdire la tauromachie, après l'archipel des Canaries en 1991. Ce vote, fruit de sept mois
de débats, est le résultat d'une "initiative législative populaire" (ILP), lancée en 2008, qui a
recueilli 180 000 signatures.
Pendant les mois précédant le vote, partisans et opposants se sont déchirés à propos de
cette interdiction par voie de presse interposée. Au point qu'aujourd'hui, le principal
quotidien national, El Pais, propose sur son site Internet une sélection de points de vue
parus dansses pages en faveur et en défaveur de la corrida.
UN COÛT SOCIAL ÉLEVÉ
Les défenseurs des corridas ont souligné à l'unisson les risques économiques liés à
l'interdiction de ces festivités dans la région autonome, dont le coût pourrait, selon les
estimations, atteindre 500 millions d'euros. L'indemnisation des travailleurs du secteur
s'élèverait à elle seule à 400 millions d'euros. Un professeur d'économie de l'université de
Barcelone, cité par El Mundo, estime quant à lui ce coût à 57 euros par Catalan, tout en
soulignant que seules seize corridas ont eu lieu à Barcelone en 2008, bien moins que les
trois cent quarante-trois corridas organisées à Madrid la même année. Le secteur taurin
emploi quarante mille personnes à travers l'Espagne et génère plusieurs milliards d'euros
de revenus chaque année.
L'argument culturel et identitaire est particulièrement mis en avant par les défenseurs de la
tauromachie, avance El Pais : selon les aficionados, la corrida fait partie de l'identité
catalane, elle y remplit une fonction sociale, et ses détracteurs ne le seraient que pour des
raisons politiques, notamment dans une logique de confrontation au gouvernement fédéral.
L'exécutif catalan a toutefois mis en garde contre toute récupération politique du débat : il a
demandé que celui-ci "ne soit pas utilisé comme un élément de confrontation entre la
Catalogne et le pouvoir central".
A l'inverse, les défenseurs des animaux se réjouissent de la possibilité de "contagion" de
cette décision à d'autres régions. Citée par Publico, la présidente du Parti antitaurin contre
la maltraitance des animaux (PACMA) considère que le succès de l'initiative populaire
"pourrait encourager d'autres communautés autonomes". Pas sûr pour autant que le débat
prenne dans d'autres régions espagnoles. Dans le Diario de Sevilla, l'exécutif andalou juge
"impensable" l'interdiction de la tauromachie dans cette région du sud de l'Espagne.
"FACTEUR DE DÉSUNION"
Il n'empêche que le sentiment d'atteinte à l'intégrité de la province est palpable. Dans les
pages d'El Mundo, l'écrivain catalan Pere Gimferrer considère que l'interdiction équivaut à
une "agression culturelle" comparable à l'interdiction du carnaval durant le franquisme.
Quant à El Juli et Enrique Ponce, deux des plus célèbres toreros espagnols, s'exprimant
dans les colonnes du quotidien ABC, ils considèrent que cette interdiction, en plus
d'attenter à la liberté, "fera triompher le nationalisme séparatiste, créera une rupture avec
le pouvoir central, et sera un facteur de désunion entre les Espagnols".
Cette loi ne résout pas tout, note enfin El Pais, car elle laisse en suspens toutes les autres
fêtes catalanes impliquant de mauvais traitements sur des animaux, et notamment celle
des "correbous" (corretoros en espagnol), tradition qui consiste à encercler un taureau et à
lui faire subir des sévices plus ou moins importants, mais sans que mort s'ensuive.
YAHOO FRANCIA:
La corrida mise à mort en Catalogne
Des applaudissements ont accompagné l'annonce par le président du Parlement catalan,
qui compte 135 sièges, du vote par 68 voix contre 55 avec neuf abstentions.
La Catalogne est une région puissante, riche, qui possède sa propre langue, sa culture, et
jouit du statut de Communauté autonome. En Espagne, beaucoup voient dans la volonté
d'interdire la corrida en Catalogne le souhait de cette région de se dissocier une nouvelle
fois du reste du pays.
Les aficionados de la corrida et les conservateurs, qui veulent préserver ce pilier de la
culture espagnole, ont pris très au sérieux cette affaire.
Le Parti populaire (centre-droit), fervent partisan du maintien de l'unité du pays autour de
Madrid, veut faire annuler l'interdiction. Il fera pression sur les deux chambres du
Parlement espagnol pour faire voter un statut protégeant les corridas et empêchant les
parlements régionaux de les interdire, a déclaré Alicia Sanchez-Camacho, présidente de la
section catalane.
Dans la région de Madrid, les défenseurs des droits des animaux ont récolté récemment
plus de 50.000 signatures avec une pétition exigeant un débat et un vote sur le sujet. Mais
pour eux, la bataille s'annonce plus rude, le Parlement régional de la communauté de
Madrid étant contrôlé par les conservateurs qui estiment que cette "fiesta nacional" ("fête
nationale") fait partie de l'héritage culturel de Madrid.
En Catalogne, les effets d'une interdiction seront limités car cette région côtière du nord-est
de l'Espagne ne possède plus qu'une arène encore utilisée à Barcelone, qui n'organise
qu'une quinzaine de corridas par an, rarement pleines. Dans le reste du pays, c'est un
millier de corridas qui sont proposées par saison.
La décision du Parlement catalan va encourager les défenseurs des droits des animaux à
demander des interdictions dans d'autres régions d'Espagne.
Joan Puigcercos, député d'un parti catalan indépendantiste, a insisté sur le fait qu'il n'était
pas question de politique, ni d'identité nationale, mais plutôt de "souffrance de l'animal".
"Nous avons une responsabilité qui dépasse les frontières de la Catalogne", a-t-il ajouté.
"Nous attendions ce jour depuis longtemps", a souligné pour sa part Leonardo Anselmi, un
représentant de PROU, un collectif d'associations de défense des animaux qui a recueilli
fin 2009 suffisamment de signatures pour forcer le Parlement de Catalogne à débattre et
voter sur le sujet.
"La souffrance des animaux dans les arènes catalanes a été abolie une fois pour toutes.
Cela crée un précédent qui, nous l'espérons, sera repris au niveau international par
d'autres parlements démocratiques, dans ces régions et pays où de telles corridas,
cruelles, sont toujours autorisées", a-t-il ajouté. Les corridas sont ainsi populaires au
Mexique, dans certains pays d'Amérique du Sud, dans le sud de la France et au Portugal.
Brigitte Bardot a salué "une victoire de la démocratie sur les lobbies tauromachiques, une
victoire de la dignité sur la cruauté". "La France doit maintenant suivre l'exemple" de la
Catalogne, a-t-elle estimé dans un communiqué de la Fondation Brigitte Bardot pour la
protection des animaux. "Faire abolir la barbarie partout en Europe est un devoir moral", a
ajouté l'ancienne actrice.
Les îles Canaries ont été la première région espagnole à interdire cette chorégraphie
mortelle entre le matador et le taureau en 1991, mais les combats n'y avaient jamais été
populaires et aucun n'avait été organisé dans les îles depuis sept ans. Le vote de la
Catalogne est donc plus important, même si la corrida n'y est pas aussi populaire qu'à
Madrid ou en Andalousie.
Alors que le débat était en cours à Barcelone, des partisans des deux camps manifestaient
devant le siège du parlement, s'invectivant mutuellement. Des opposants à la corrida
brandissaient des images frappantes d'animaux ensanglantés, un homme était recouvert
de faux sang, et des partisans des combats portaient des pancartes aux couleurs du
drapeau catalan, rouge et jaune, sur lesquelles on pouvait lire des slogans tels que
"Libertad y Toros" ("Liberté et taureaux"). AP
DIARIO "LA REPUBBLICA" (ITALIA):
IL CASO
Spagna, storico no alle corride
La Catalogna le abolisce dal 2012
La regione è la seconda a proibire la tauromachia dopo le Canarie. Davanti al Parlamento
manifestazioni contrapposte. C'è chi legge nella decisione un'ulteriore presa di distanze da
Madrid
BARCELLONA - Il Parlamento catalano ha approvato l'abolizione della corride nella
regione con 68 voti a favore, 55 contrari e nove astensioni. I parlamentari catalani hanno
approvato ''un'iniziativa legislativa popolare'', sostenuta da 180.000 firme. Le corride con i
tori saranno proibite a partire dal 2012. La Catalogna diventa così la seconda regione della
Spagna a vietare la tauromachia, dopo l'arcipelago delle Canarie che lo fece nel 1991.
Questa mattina davanti al Parlamento catalano c'erano decine di manifestanti che
protestavano per ragioni contrapposte: da una parte c'era chi reclama ''la libertà''' per gli
amanti di questo spettacolo e dall'altra chi invoca la fine della ''tortura'' dei tori. "Ci sono
alcune tradizioni che non possono restare congelate nel tempo. Non dobbiamo proibire
ogni cosa, ma sicuramente le cose più degradanti", ha detto Jose Rull, parlamentare del
CiU, il partito nazionalista catalano, durante il dibattito.
GUARDA IL VIDEO 1
Iniziativa popolare. Con il voto di oggi si conclude un processo iniziato circa un anno e
mezzo fa quando il Parlamento catalano aveva accettato un'iniziativa popolare. Il 5 luglio la
piattaforma Prou! (Basta, ndr) ha presentato 180.000 firme a sostegno della proposta,
appoggiata anche dalla Società mondiale per la protezione degli animali che ha raccolto
140.000 firme in 120 Paesi.
Dal punto di vista politico, per alcuni la decisione della Catalogna rappresenta l'ennesima
presa di distanza dal potere centrale di Madrid e dal dibattito sulla cultura e le tradizioni
spagnole, in parole povere una manifestazione di quelle istanze indipendentiste che negli
ultimi tempi sono andate accentuandosi. Per la regione a statuto speciale ci sarà
comunque un contraccolpo economico: gli impresari del business delle corride hanno già
chiesto un'indennità intorno ai 300 milioni di euro.
(28 luglio 2010)
Diario "Times of Malta" (MALTA):
Wednesday, 28th July 2010 - 10:35CET
Spanish region bans bullfighting
PA
Spain's Catalonia region outlawed bullfighting today, becoming the country's first mainland
region to do so after a heated debate that put animal rights against the idea of preserving a
pillar of traditional culture.
Cheers broke out in the local 135-seat legislature after the speaker announced the ban had
passed by a vote 68 to 55 with nine abstentions.
The ban in the wealthy seaside region centring on Barcelona will take effect in 2012.
Catalonia is a powerful, wealthy region with its own language and culture and a large
degree of self-rule. Many in Spain have seen the pressure there for a bullfighting ban as a
further bid by Catalonia to stand out from the rest of the country.
The centre-right Popular Party, which is fervent about the idea of Spain as a unified country
run from Madrid - and also supports bullfighting - said it is considering a legal application to
overturn the ban.
The practical effect of the ban will be limited: Catalonia has only one functioning bullring, in
Barcelona, while another disused one is being turned into a shopping mall. It stages 15
fights a year which are rarely sold out, out of a nationwide total of roughly 1,000 bouts per
season.
However bullfighting fans and Spanish conservatives have taken the issue seriously,
seeing an anti-Spanish rebuke in the grassroots, anti-bullfighting drive which started last
year.
The result will energise animal rights groups bent on seeking bans in other regions of
Spain.
The first Spanish region to outlaw bullfighting was the Canary Islands, in 1991. But fights
were never that popular there and when the ban took effect there had not been a bullfight
for seven years. That makes the Catalonia vote a much more potent case, even if
bullfighting is not as popular there as it is in Madrid or down south in Andalusia.
As debate got underway in Barcelona, protesters from both camps rallied outside the
parliament building.
Bullfighting opponents carried posters with pictures of bleeding animals. One man covered
in fake red blood carried a sign in English, "Stop animal cruelty, No more blood."
Pro-bullfighting groups carried signs painted on the red and yellow Catalan flag, with
slogans such as Libertad y Toros (Freedom and bulls).
DIARIO "EL SOL DE MÉXICO" (MÉXICO):
29 de julio de 2010
Se acabaron los toros en Cataluña
El parlamento prohibió las corridas
El Parlamento de Cataluña ha prohibido la fiesta de los toros en esa Comunidad Autónoma
después de una desnortada carrera que comenzó con la declaración institucional de
Barcelona como Ciudad Antitaurina, la "minoría" antitaurina ha alcanzado su gran objetivo
con el beneplácito de los representantes de siete millones de catalanes por 68 votos a
favor de la ILP, 55 en contra y 9 abstenciones. Luego de un agónico debate en el que no
mejoraban las noticias y las sensaciones que se venían constatando los últimos días, la
prohibición, atentando contra un pedazo de la historia de Cataluña, se ha perpetrado.
Ahora, y aunque todavía queda esperanza puesto que existen resquicios jurídicos y
políticos, la cuenta atrás se ha puesto en marcha y La Monumental será "ejecutada" en
menos de año y medio.
500 MILLONES DE INDEMNIZACIONES
La Generalidad de Cataluña tendría que hacer frente a entre 300 y 500 millones de euros
en indemnizaciones en caso de producirse finalmente la prohibición de los toros. Esta
conclusión se extrae de un estudio llevado a cabo por Vicente Royuela, profesor de
Economía de la Universidad de Barcelona. En su estudio calcula que la plaza de toros de
Barcelona genera anualmente una cifra superior a los 4 millones de euros. Esta cifra,
multiplicada por los 99 años que la empresa podría seguir operando en el coso de
conformidad con la licencia de actividad, conformaría la cifra de 300 millones de euros con
los que la Generalidad catalana tendría que indemnizar a las empresas organizadoras de
los festejos taurinos.
El profesor Royuela señala en su estudio que la organización de una corrida de toros
requiere un presupuesto de entre 200,000 y 400,000 euros e involucra a varios agentes
económicos: alquiler de la plaza, costes del ganado (crianza y transporte), servicios de
plaza (taquilleros, seguridad, médicos), hostelería y, por supuesto, emolumentos de los
toreros y sus respectivas cuadrillas.
El estudio señala, sobre ese cálculo, que cada contribuyente debería pagar 57 euros de
sus impuestos para hacer frente al coste de las indemnizaciones y afirma que, con ese
montante, podrían construirse seis centros hospitalarios o hasta cien centros escol
DIARIO "EL SIGLO DE TORREÓN" (MÉXICO):
Prohíbe Cataluña corridas de toros
Por: AP/ BARCELONA, ESPAÑA
Cataluña decidió el miércoles prohibir las corridas de toros y la región nororiental se volvió
la primera zona continental de España que toma esa medida, tras un acalorado debate
que confrontó los derechos de los animales con los defensores de la cultura nacional.
+
La decisión del parlamento catalán, con 135 escaños, animará a los grupos por los
derechos de los animales a promover la prohibición en otras regiones de España.
Una exclamación festiva estalló en la legislatura cuando el presidente del parlamento
anunció que la prohibición había sido aprobada por 68 votos contra 55 y nueve
abstenciones.
La proscripción en la próspera región costera, dominada por Barcelona, comenzará a regir
en 2012.
El Partido Popular, una organización de centro derecha que defiende fervientemente la
idea de España como un país unificado y gobernado desde Madrid, anunció que considera
una posible demanda para revertir la decisión legislativa.
El efecto práctico de la proscripción será limitado: Cataluña tiene sólo un coso en
funciones, en Barcelona, mientras otro en desuso es convertido en centro comercial.
Aquella plaza realiza 15 corridas al año y en raras ocasiones se llena. El número es muy
reducido respecto a la cifra nacional de unas 1.000 lidias por temporada.
Sin embargo, los taurófilos y un sector conservador español han tomado el asunto con
suma seriedad la suerte de la fiesta nacional en Cataluña, por considerarla una respuesta
antiespañola que comenzó el año pasado.
La decisión del parlamento catalán, con 135 escaños, animará a los grupos por los
derechos de los animales a promover la prohibición en otras regiones de España.
La primera región española que prohibió la lidia de toros fueron las Islas Canarias, en
1991, pero las corridas nunca fueron populares en ese lugar y para cuando la prohibición
rigió habían pasado siete años sin corridas en esa zona. En consecuencia, la votación en
Cataluña cobra mucha más importancia aunque las corridas no son tan populares allí
como en Madrid o en la sureña Andalucía
BBC (REINO UNIDO):
Catalonia's bullfight ban provokes emotional
response
Sometimes the
bulls hit back
The Catalan parliament voted to ban bullfighting in an emotional session packed full of
deputies, activists and observers, says the BBC's Sarah Rainsford in Barcelona.
In the end the vote passed by an absolute majority - a wider margin of victory than animal
rights campaigners had dared hope for.
Sixty-eight deputies voted in favour of the ban; 55 were opposed.
Related stories
"We had three different speeches prepared, and in the end we could read out the one for a
big victory," laughed Jordi Casamitjana, who was heavily involved in pushing for this vote.
He admits he had expected a closer call.
"It means the politicians here actually get it. Bullfighting has no place in the 21st Century. I
could not hold back my tears," he said.
He was not the only one. As the result was announced, those supporting the ban leapt and
shouted for joy. Alongside them, some of the losers cried too - in frustration.
But activists collected 180,000 signatures in order to get this initiative off the ground and
into parliament - and they were determined to enjoy the moment.
“Start Quote
They are trying to get independence and they think if they highlight differences it will help”
End Quote Albert Rivera Pro-bullfight Catalan deputy
"I'm over the moon!" enthused Deborah Parris, who worked with the campaign group Prou
(Enough, in Catalan), to ban the corrida, as the bullfight is known.
"There is incredible suffering in a bullfight. Six bulls are killed each time, not one, and they
are tortured for 20 minutes," she said. "It's not right to pay money to go and watch that kind
of cruelty."
Waning popularity
During the debate, deputies in parliament heard very different views - as parties that back
bullfighting described an age-old tradition and an art form that must be preserved.
They also argued against a formal ban on principle, saying individuals should be left to
decide whether to attend a corrida.
There were warnings too, about the economic impact of stopping the fights, both in lost
ticket sales and compensation for those who depend on bullfighting for their livelihood. That
amount will be decided, in the coming months.
The anti-bullfight activists deny a wider
political agenda
The bullfighting lobby failed to convince though, and the bloodsport will now be banned
throughout Catalonia from January 2012.
The practice has been waning in popularity here for many years.
A mixture of animal rights activism, a ban on child attendance and politics has left ring
owners struggling to fill seats.
There is just one active bullring now in Barcelona, and an average of 15 fights each year.
Madrid stages eight times that number. Many of the spectators are tourists.
Political agenda?
Although the corrida has deep roots in Catalonia, nationalists here now see it as a
"Spanish" fiesta.
"They are trying to get independence and they think if they highlight differences it will help,"
said Albert Rivera, a deputy with the "mixed group" in parliament who voted to keep
bullfighting alive.
Attendance has gradually declined at Catalonian
bullfighting arenas
"They don't like reminders of how much we share."
Those backing the ban deny any direct link between this vote and wider political goals.
But many Spaniards have wondered whether it is at least partly an act of revenge for a
deeply unpopular ruling by the constitutional court.
Earlier this month, the court in Madrid struck down part of Catalonia's statute of autonomy,
including its right to label itself as a nation. The decision sparked an enormous protest.
But the groups who brought the corrida issue to parliament insist it is all about progress:
banning a barbaric practice, for good.
"It's like the ban on fox hunting in the UK," said Jordi Casamitjana.
"Society has evolved and that's all about losing bad things. Fortunately, Catalan politicians
have seen they need to evolve too, so they don't remain relics - like these traditions."
Buoyed by their victory, activists have vowed to help extend the ban across the country.
But they know they will face far stiffer opposition in the bullfighting heartlands of southern
Spain and Madrid.
In the capital, a petition calling for a vote on banning bullfights there has collected more
than 50,000 signatures of support.
In response, the regional government has declared the corrida protected, part of Madrid's
cultural heritage.
dA
derecho ANIMAL
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Julio-­‐ 2010