LFI deputy Aymeric Caron castigated “the obstruction” against his proposal to ban bullfighting and withdrew his text, in a very agitated atmosphere Thursday at the National Assembly. “It saddens me”, launched the deputy of Paris, by denouncing hundreds of amendments of “obstruction”. “Applaud, be proud of yourselves,” he quipped, addressing elected officials in favor of bullfighting, a subject that divides most political groups.
Prohibition of bullfighting: @CaronAymericoff announces the withdrawal of its bill, due to the “obstruction” of its text. He intends to table a new “transpartisan” bill. “Bullfighting will soon be abolished in this country, I promise you that.”#DirectANpic.twitter.com/e2DeMJmOOU
—LCP (@LCP) November 24, 2022
With hundreds of “obstruction” amendments, it is “impossible” to reach “a final vote within the time limit, that is to say midnight”, agreed Aymeric Caron, during this day dedicated to the texts of the LFI group. He promised in the future a new “transpartisan law proposal” to “abolish bullfighting”.
“You run away from the debate”
The withdrawal of his text sparked a shower of annoyed reactions and reminders of the rules in the hemicycle. “You are fleeing the debate” for fear of the rejection of the text, accused LR Anne-Laure Blin, pro-bullfighting. At the start of these quickly interrupted discussions, Aymeric Caron once again struck out against the “torture” of the bull and his “ordeal” in the arena.
Missioned to demine this delicate subject, the Secretary of State in charge of rurality Dominique Faure recognized that this “subject crosses all of society”. But the government is opposed to the prohibition of bullfighting, an “ancestral tradition which contributes to the identity of certain territories”, she underlined.
The bill was rejected for the first time in committee on November 16. The National Observatory of Bullfighting Cultures was delighted that “bullfighting wins by abandonment”. The Brigitte Bardot Foundation for its part condemned the “obstruction” of pro-bullfighting, a “deep shame for our elected officials”.
Aymeric Caron wanted to modify the penal code
Sometimes heated, the debate between defenders of this “regional cultural tradition” and activists for the animal cause has gone far beyond the walls of the National Assembly, with pro and anti-bullfighting demonstrations last weekend in bullfighting towns and in Paris. On Wednesday, during a visit to the salon of the Association of Mayors of France (AMF), the President Emmanuel Macron had ruled out a ban immediately. He advocates “conciliation” between “local customs” and “sensitivity” to the animal condition, rather than “invective”.
Aymeric Caron wanted to modify the penal code, which punishes animal abuse, but whose penalties under article 521-1 “are not applicable to bullfights when an uninterrupted local tradition can be invoked”. Supporters of bullfighting like Anne-Laure Blin (LR) claim an “art”, a “regional identity”, a “popular culture” and praise the “thousands of sanctuary lands” thanks to “the breeding of wild bulls”.