A renowned Colombian matador claimed that President Juan Manuel Santos will support his bid to make bullfighting not only legal, but a cultural heritage.
The famous bullfighter Luis Bolivar revealed that President Santos is looking for a solution of reconciliation to revive the bull fights in Colombia’s capital Bogota in search of declaring the bullfight as cultural heritage, reported Caracol Radio Wednesday.
A group of renowned Colombian and Spanish bullfighters met with Santos in a bid to override the ban imposed by Bogota’s Mayor Gustavo Petro, who in June earlier this year, announced that the capital’s bullfighting arena known as Santamaria would be transformed into a center for culture and education in order to abandon animal cruelty, including the death of the bull.
“It is important to be able to express our regret at the things that have happened and what it means to support the culture of bullfighting and the people that dedicate their lives to it,” said Julian Lopez, a famous Spanish bullfighter who added, “there are many that love this profession and that live for it and fight for their freedom to watch the bulls.”
Another well known bullfighter, Pepe Manrique, said the decision of the mayor was illegal and a violation of the laws set in 2004 to protect people of the profession.