Protest over Pamplona Running of the Bulls

ACTIVISTS from Spain, Australia, Russia, Sweden and the UK gathered in the main square at Pamplona on Tuesday July 5, to protest against the annual Running of the Bulls, which this year takes place between July 7 and 14.

Organised by AnimaNaturalis and PETA, 75 young men and women, dressed in their underwear and with bull horns attached to their heads, drenched themselves in fake blood in an effort to draw attention to what they consider to be a barbaric event.

During the daytime of the San Fermin festival, thousands of people run through the streets of Pamplona pursued by a traditional six bulls, and then in the evening there is a bullfight where matadors and toreadors from around the country match their skill against the strength of the bulls.

Said to date back to the 14^th century when bulls were moved across country and young herders encouraged them to run by goading them, the spectacle attracts upwards of one million people, and is a major source of income for the city, although there are often reports of participants (in many cases somewhat the worse for wear from drink) being injured and occasionally killed.

Hannah Bailey, one of the Australian protestors, said: “We’re calling on Spain to end its widely condemned Running of the Bulls event and the bullfights that follow, and, with them, the horrific suffering and abuse of bulls.”