The Mayor of Bogota Prohibits Bullfights
The mayor of Bogota, Gustavo Petro, announced on the 14th June, that the ‘Santamaría’ bullring would be transformed into «a new scenario for culture and education.» After the Bullfighting Corporation of Bogotá rejected his petition to ban the killing of the bull during the ‘fiestas’, the mayor of the Colombian capital decided to terminate the current contract and use the bullring to carry out cultural and educational activities which do not involve animal exploitation. Petro stated, “the ‘Plaza de Toros de Santamaría’ will be now a new place for educational activities, in which the best poets and writers will meet daily with students to teach literature.” The mayor recalled that the Plaza de Toros “is owned by the citizens and will continue to be active, just as with the theater ‘Jorge Gaitán’,’ Plaza de Bolivar’ and the network of museums which is very active in the district.” He added, that although by law bullfighting is still legal, the law does allow the state to not to participate or fund it. Mr. Petro also opened the possibility of canceling the contract signed by the District Institute of Recreation and Sport (IDRD).
