A Colombian court has made a ruling on animal rights that jeopardizes the future of bullfighting.
“One must recognize the value of animals as living beings and their capacity to have rights,” the court stated in reference to both domesticated and wild animals.
Representing the nation’s top administrative court, Justice Enrique Gil Botero noted that it is the responsibility of owners to protect the rights of animals and ensure they are decently treated, concluding that animals have the right to die with dignity and without suffering.
The court’s decision provided a legal basis for animal rights advocates fighting to ban the spectacle. Spokeswoman for Bogota’s Animal Rights Defense board Maria Janeth Torres called the legislation a “…weapon to work for the benefit of animals.”
The change in law upholds Bogota’s Mayor Gustavo Petro’s recent suspension of bullfighting in Plaza Santamaria, the capital’s main venue for the sport.
Medellin Mayor Anibal Gaviria followed Petro’s lead June 15 by saying he would cut funding for bullfighting if groups refused to stop killing the animals after events. “Medellin wants to be a leader in the process toward bloodless bullfights,” Gaviria told Caracol Radio.