Victory Against Rodeos: Court of the Algarve, in Portugal,
prohibits rodeo scheduled to take place this weekend in Estói,
Faro, responding positively to an injunction brought by ANIMAL
against the rodeo to prevent this brutal spectacle from
happening
From: miguel.moutinho - ANIMAL
Subject: Victory Against Rodeos: Court
of the Algarve, in Portugal, prohibits rodeo scheduled to take
place this weekend in Estói, Faro, responding positively to an
injunction brought by ANIMAL against the rodeo to prevent this
brutal spectacle from happening
Date: September 6,
2008
For
Immediate Release
6th
September
Press
Contact
Miguel
Moutinho,
President of ANIMAL (Mobile Phone: 00 351 96 235 81 83 |
E-mail:
miguel.moutinho@animal.org.pt)
The
Judicial Court of Faro, in the Algarve (Southern region of
Portugal, known and appreciated internationally by millions of
tourists), has yesterday ruled rodeos as cruel and unlawful
activities in Portugal, prohibiting a rodeo which was scheduled to
take place today, Saturday, in the context of an equestrian
festival in the small and rural town of Estói, within the village
of Faro. This rodeo was part of the newly-started National
Championship of Rodeo, which is promoted by a rodeo company which
has started to act in Portugal this year.
Responding
positively to the injunction brought by ANIMAL against the rodeo in
order to judicially stop it, the Court of Faro considered proven,
and has admitted as validated facts, that rodeos are spectacles
which involve the cruel infliction of severe pain and suffering to
the bulls, calves and horses which are victims of these brutal
events, and that these frequently become gravely injured when used
in rodeos. The court admitted that the kind of acts perpetrated
against animals in rodeos may eventually kill them, as a result of
the extreme violence to which the animals are subjected. This court
has also responded positively to the claims made by ANIMAL about
the unlawful standing of rodeos in Portugal, under the existing
Animal Protection Law, given that these are not in any way accepted
or permitted by this or any other Portuguese law, while they
include acts of cruelty which, by their consequences for the
animals, this law prohibits. Based on this, the judge decided to
prohibit the rodeo that was scheduled to take place in Estói,
today.
The
court notified the rodeo company, the organisation of the
equestrian festival and the local municipality of its decision and
ordered them to refrain from having the rodeo happening. This rodeo
was not only licensed by the municipality of Faro – it was
supported by this municipality and by two other agencies of the
Ministry of Agriculture, which makes the situation even more
seriously outrageous, given that the Portuguese State was
supporting an unlawful activity that a Portuguese Court has
prohibited on the grounds of its violent nature and the way it
collides with the existing Animal Protection
Law.
The
Court of Faro has also notified all the local and national
authorities of this prohibition, requesting their intervention to
ensure that the court decision will be enforced. ANIMAL is now
contacting the authorities to make sure that they will intervene
accordingly and stop the rodeo.
The
judge specifically notified the organisers of the rodeo informing
them that, in case they do not respect the court order, they will
be condemned to pay a 15.000,00 euros fine and will also face
criminal charges for disrespecting an explicit court order, as
stated in the Portuguese Civil Procedure Code.
Miguel
Moutinho, President of ANIMAL, said, “we are extremely happy with
this decision of the Court of Faro, which will prevent several
bulls and horses from being viciously brutalised in this
rodeo”.
“Rodeos
are extremely cruel spectacles which have been outlawed by many
municipalities and through several court decisions even in the USA
and in Brazil, from where they are being exported to other parts of
the world.”
“In
2004, ANIMAL identified the first attempt to create a rodeo
industry in Portugal and reacted promptly. Out of six rodeos that
rodeo promoters tried to organise, ANIMAL successfully stopped
four. For years, we never heard again about rodeos in Portugal
until this year. Now, in 2008, ANIMAL has identified a second and
much stronger attempt to introduce rodeos in Portugal, so now we
are even more strongly doing everything we can to stop them for
good.”
“Portugal
has already more than enough forms of cruelty and contempt towards
animals and we work every day to stop all those unfair and
unethical attitudes and activities. And, while doing that, ANIMAL
is determined to stop new forms of violence towards animals from
successfully being installed in Portugal, as we are now doing by
going to court to stop and end the chances of rodeos coming to
Portugal.”
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