More Old Bull: Culture and the bullfight

Bullfighting has a mystique. It is one that captivates even politicians. "The bullfighter is an artist like a painter, a poet, a composer or a sculptor." "The bullfight has artistic expression, ritual, historical and cultural value, popular tradition, a feeling and an emotion."

These are the words of the Partido Popular's leader in the Spanish senate. The words sound disingenuous when set against the treatment of the bull - described as a "mythical animal, a symbol of strength, courage and fertility" - but they serve to explain why, beyond the spectacle, there is an intangible quality inherent to the bullfight. It is one of, if you like, Spanishness.

A motion in the senate, brought by the Partido Popular, sought to establish that the bullfight was of "Bien de Interés Cultural" - of such cultural interest that it requires legal protection as part of the historical heritage of Spain.

The motion was defeated, mainly on a technicality. The opponents, the PSOE socialists and other parties, argued that the state cannot rule as to whether a "fiesta" such as the bullfight can be subject to a BIC protection, as this is something which only the autonomous regions can do. By the same token, the regions can decide not to protect this "fiesta". In Catalonia, they decided not only not to protect it but to ban it, as also did the Canary Islands many years ago.

The language of the senate debate, though, spoke of the depth of tradition, but it is a tradition subject to an ever-increasing growth of opposition within Spain. It is one of popular, organic growth, fertilised by pressure groups. In Andalusia, there is an attempt at initiating a ban along the lines of how the Catalonian one came about. Driven by a so-called popular legislative initiative and inspired by the animal-rights movement, a ban in Andalusia, were it to be introduced, would be seismic in the way that the Catalonian one is not.

Despite the flowery language and its implication of a cultural certitude, bullfighting's popularity has waned, or at least opinion polls would suggest that it has, while the level of support varies according to age and to regions of Spain. The Catalonian ban, political dimension or not, was not so difficult to decide in favour of; bullfighting simply isn't that popular there. Andalusia is quite a different matter.

But if one accepts that polls reflect the Spanish population as a whole, then bullfighting has become very much a minority interest. (A poll some years ago found those who had no interest in it to be over two-thirds of the sample.) For the Partido Popular to attempt to protect bullfighting as being in the interests of culture is contrary, given that interest has dwindled as much as it would appear to have. However, the party is not wrong; it is of cultural interest, but whether it is in society's interest is a very different question. To now grant it some sort of legal protection would be a step too far and one that would be out of touch with much popular sentiment.

It is no coincidence that it should be the PP that has sought the adoption of this measure. As a conservative party, a good chunk of its constituency is representative of an old Spain, one that has been confronted by the socially liberal policies of the current Zapatero administration. Bullfighting is not in the category of issues, such as abortion, that have brought Zapatero into conflict with the Catholic right, but it is in a broader category that has embraced environmentalism and now also animal rights and which challenges the old order.

Bullfighting is a political issue, whether one likes it or not, and the PP has attempted a pre-emptive strike against any national ban, the sense of which might be questionable in any event. Fox-hunting legislation in Britain has been invoked as an example of how a "civilised society" can, through the force of law, turn its back on tradition. But apart from the fact that the legislation backfired, fox-hunting was an Aunt Sally and a superficial inconsequence in cultural terms, certainly by comparison with bullfighting, despite the declining popularity.

Rather than nationally, the matter is probably best dealt with at regional level. Perhaps other regions will follow Catalonia's lead, creating sufficient impulse to embolden a future government - a socialist one - to go for a national ban that currently would be fraught with difficulty. Or perhaps the hope is that, through a process of society's opposition, the point arrives at which bullfighting fades away through a lack of interest - cultural or otherwise.


Any comments to andrew@thealcudiaguide.com please.