Colombia approves the ban on bullfighting from 2027

The Congress of Colombia approved this Tuesday the ban on bullfighting and other shows of animal abuse starting in 2027, a historic decision in one of the countries with the greatest bullfighting tradition in America. With 93 votes in favor and 2 against, the Lower House gave the green light to the text that only needs the signature of the president, Gustavo Petro, openly anti-bullfighting, to become law.

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Until the ban comes into force, in three years, The Government will look for employment alternatives for workers that depend directly or indirectly on bullfighting.

“It is a historic milestone,” said Congressman Juan Carlos Losada, who gave his support to the project. As of today, Colombia “is leaving the sad list” of countries “where bullfighting, animal torture, is still considered a cultural element,” added the legislator.

Petro celebrated the approval on his X account: “Congratulations to those who finally made death not a spectacle,” he wrote.

The approved text includes other shows similar to bullfights that are held with calves and heifers. The authorization or prohibition of this activity depends on local governments. under a 2018 ruling by the Constitutional Court, which delegated eventual restrictions to Congress.

Congratulations to those who finally made death not a spectacle.

Those who have fun with the death of animals will end up having fun with the death of human beings; Just as those who burn books will end up burning human beings.

— Gustavo Petro (@petrogustavo) May 28, 2024

Bogotá and Medellín, the two main cities in Colombia, have banned bullfights since 2020, while in Cali (southwest) and Manizales (central-west) they are allowed because they are central events of their festivals. Colombia joins the list of countries that prohibit bullfighting in the region, such as Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Uruguay and Guatemala.

In recent years, the ban on bullfights was a dispute between environmentalist congressmen and their opponents, mainly from right-wing parties, accused of responding to the particular interests of the organizers of these events. In 2020, a similar project came close to being approved, but was ultimately shelved.

Congressmen in favor of the ban argued that bullfights, one of the most controversial cultural legacies of Spanish colonization, “They are contrary to other rights of constitutional ranksuch as a healthy environment, human dignity and the recognition of animals as sentient beings and subjects of special protection against abuse and violence.”

They also said that the “naturalization of violence against animals” is a consequence of the armed conflict that Colombia has been experiencing for 60 years, so these types of “circus shows” must be nipped in the bud.

“85% of Colombians are against” bullfighting, stated the representative of the Green Party, Alejandro García, one of the authors of the text, citing a recently published independent survey.

The debate prior to the vote in Congress featured the voices of local leaders, mayors, livestock representatives, bullfighting fair workers and multiple activist groups for the defense of animals. YesSeven countries in the world still celebrate bullfighting fairs: Ecuador, Spain, France, Mexico, Peru, Portugal and Venezuela.

In Quito, the capital of Ecuador, it is prohibited to kill the bull. Venezuela has canceled some bullfights and in Peru the courts ruled against the ban in 2020. In Mexico, four of the 32 states have banned the fiesta brava. In February, a court reversed a temporary suspension of bullfighting in Mexico City.

dmr