Jun

Anti-Bullfighting Summit Success

posted at 9:10 AM
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Here’s a report from Rob, our bullfighting campaigner, who has just come back from a trip to Brussels. Over to you Rob…

“29 different groups from 12 Countries and two continents (Europe & South America) came together in Brussels for the largest anti bullfighting summit to take place to date. At the organisational heart of this new initiative of cooperation within the anti bullfighting community has been PETA Europe.

The anti-bullfighting summit took place over two days starting Wednesday 4th June and finishing Thursday 5th June. This wasn’t just any old summit but one that combined both speaking to each other as well as action. Part of the summit took place in the usual way with discussions on future tactics, working as a unified force, cooperation and coordination with groups not just in Europe but also Latin America, with groups attending from Mexico, Ecuador, Columbia and Venezuela. As well as groups from all the European bullfighting countries and Ireland, the Netherlands and the UK.

This summit wasn’t purely about discussing future tactics however, it was about action and we came together with a specific mission. Three months ago we received word that the bullfighters were planning a big exhibition in the EU Parliament in order to spin their lies to MEPs in the hope of convincing them to support any future plans, namely increasing or keeping the status quo where EU subsidies are concerned. It was estimated by Jordi Portabella, Council of Barcelona City Council that in the region of €29.12 million are given in subsidies to Spanish bull breeders every year. If the EU puts a halt to these subsidies the impact could be catastrophic to the bullfighting industry.

Before the summit and the bullfighter’s exhibition having taken place, a glossy information pack was produced in order to refute point by point the lies of the bullfighters. PETA was at the very centre of producing this information pack closely working with WSPA and the League against Cruel Sports and it was given to every MEP at the beginning of the week in order to pre-empt the lies of the bullfighters in their exhibition. Interestingly our tactics seem to have been successful, as I have just heard that the Belgium MEP Gérard Duprez has withdrawn his participation in the bullfighting exhibition at Brussels. In a letter seen by PETA the MEP says that he was convinced that the exhibition was not designed to promote bullfights. That was the information he received. When he realised that it was in fact to promote bullfights he decided to withdraw. He considers that he was manipulated and he does not want to see his name associated with such an exhibition.

The anti-bullfighting alliance had a stall in the EU Parliament where MEPs were asked to sign a life-sized model bull.”