Bullfighting in Catalonia Comes to an End on Sunday
September 21st, 2011
Barcelona’s El Monumental will host its final bullfight on Sunday before a ban on the sport takes effect across Catalonia. The regional legislature banned the centuries old tradition last year after Catalans signed a petition against it.
The bullfighting industry is still convinced it has a chance to overturn the ban in Catalonia, the only mainland region in Spain that has blocked the sport.
“I think the politicians will think twice about the ban and bullfighting will live on. And thank God because Catalonia has plenty of serious bullfighting fans and in a democratic country they should be able to go to a bullfight,” said Moeses Fraele, 64, owner of El Pilar, the breeder supplying bulls for Sunday’s spectacle.
20,000 spectators are expected to fill a sold-out Monumental — the only bullring still operating in Catalonia — for Sunday’s blockbuster starring celebrated Madrid matador Jose Tomas, who retired in 2002 but has made a few rare appearances since 2007.
“There are several catalysts which could lead to the ban being overturned,” said Paco March, bullfighting critic for La Vanguardia, Catalonia’s top newspaper. He said the conservative People’s Party is fighting the ban on constitutional grounds and the Catalonia Bullfighting Federation is collecting signatures to petition the Spanish Congress.
Catalonia is known for its constant wrangling with Madrid over greater autonomy and the right to maintain its separate culture, such as the Catalan language. Catalonia’s bullfighting ban symbolizes its drive to differentiate itself from Madrid and its traditions. The only other Spanish region to end bullfights was the Canary Islands, in 1991.
Even if the pro-bull lobby manages to reopen El Monumental, the general appeal of bullfighting is diminishing. The number of bullfights shrank by 34 percent between 2007 and 2010 according to official figures. Barcelona’s own Las Arenas ring shut in the 1970s and is now a shopping mall.
“I don’t know anyone my age who would go to a fight. It’s not a Catalan tradition but an Andalusian or Extramadurian one. The fact that the bull is treated so badly even before the fight should override any tradition anyway,” said Laia Gomez, 31, a Barcelona customer service worker. From Reuters
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