Three More Yucatán Municipalities Ordered to Ban Bullfighting Instruments

Mérida, Yucatán — Bullfights in the Yucatán municipalities of Cansahcab, Sotuta and Ucú must now be held without instruments that cause physical harm to animals, after federal district judges granted protective orders requested by animal-rights groups.

The orders, issued in amparo lawsuits filed by Animal Héroes and PETA Latino, do not cancel the bullfights or roping tournaments scheduled in those towns. Instead, they require the events to take place without causing suffering to bulls or other animals that participate or are exhibited.

Under the restrictions, organizers may hold the events, but they are barred from using swords, lances, banderillas, rejones, spikes or any other instrument that could cause bleeding, pain or unnecessary stress to the animals during the entire length of the festivities.

The new rulings bring to seven the number of Yucatán municipalities where similar restrictions are in effect. The previous orders were granted for bullfights in Seyé, Muna, Tixkokob and Temozón.

The advocacy groups argued that the use of these instruments violates Article 4 of Mexico’s Constitution, which relates to animal protection, as well as the official animal-welfare standard NOM-033. They said they will continue using legal channels to fully eliminate tools that can injure bulls at bullfights in other parts of Yucatán, but insisted their aim is not to abolish the tradition. They say they want bullfighting to occur without violence toward animals.

The rulings mark another step in the legal battle over bullfighting in Yucatán, where animal-welfare concerns are increasingly colliding with long-standing community traditions. Bullfighting advocates now face uncertainty about the future of events that have been part of local celebrations for decades.