As touradas: Violência, Crueldade, Ignorância, Futilidade - A vergonha de Portugal

WARNING This video contains violent and shocking footage, not advisable for children and sensitive adults.
PARTY?
This is the most beautiful show in the world.
Music, colors, costumes... all that was very beautiful to me.
It´s a horrible show, a blood show, a pain show, a suffering show.
TRADITION?
It's a Portuguese tradition...
It's now, one of the few traditional shows we have in Portugal.
Most of the Portuguese people do not like bullfights.
ART?
Bullfighting is a show that becomes art, isn't it?
I think it's... art!
I always felt afraid... if someone says he doesn't, I think that it isn't true.
COURAGE?
There is great fear. As soon as the "corrida" starts, the fear exists.
I think they should show up brave, in things more beautiful to the world,
such as helping children, helping elderly...
It has its violence, but maybe if it hadn't, it wouldn't have that flame...
CRUELTY?
I do not go there to hurt a bull. I don't carry that in my mind.
SUFFERING?
Bulls do not suffer in that moment.
The bull suffers a lot!
This bull breed was made to be handled in bullfights.
There's no justification in keeping and preserving a breed, simply to torture it.
FIGHT?
The fighting, bull vs. human, is totally unfair.
The "pega" (face catch) is the most radical sport of all.
BULLFIGHT?
I think it is a humiliating show for humans.
God created animals to serve men
and not men to serve animals.
No one likes animals more than me!
Please leave the animals alone!
RED AND BLACK
I fought bulls in about 2000 "corridas" and
I fought about 4000 bulls.
He keeps his triumphs and memories of the arena, in his farm in Alentejo.
Cups, photos, the first costume and even what's left of his most famous horse.
This horse was the most famous I had
and the one that taught me and helped me the most in my career.
His name was Ferrolho.
But he has other Ferrolho's memories: tail, skin
and he even made this table from his the paws.
In another room, he has more trophies...
I fought these bulls in Madrid, where...
I cut their ears... ...are the maximum trophies and...
I came out through the "puerta grande" (great door).
- And you killed them? - Yes, they were killed in Madrid.
Why do you keep the heads?
They...they...are important bulls because
coming out through the "puerta grande" in Madrid is... ...is every bullfighter's dream.
João Moura says that he left Madrid, nine times, on shoulders.
However, he admits that he's already feeling a bit tired.
Now he has a 14 year old son to carry on the family tradition.
...study till "year 9" and then start bullfighting.
- No more than "year 9"? - No.
I look feminine,
I fight bulls and I dress in a very feminine way.
And that's an advantage.
What's fighting bulls in a feminine way? What's the difference?
For instance, I like fighting bulls with my hair down,
I do not fix my hair with modeling gel,
I always wear makeup, light makeup, I'm always smiling...
The bullfighter have a sexist reputation, that's true.
I think that women's place is by our side but... separately.
Following us, dining with us, supporting us at home,
giving us strength and wishing us luck...
For the "forcados", I think that's the women's main role.
Manuel Gonçalves blames the economic crisis for the lack of public in "corridas".
After all, the cost of a "corrida" ticket is €20, approximately.
But some people see in this failure,
a clear sign that the Portuguese people do not like seeing animals suffering.
The truth is that in a bullfight,
the bulls are the ones who lose everything and win nothing.
After the "25th of April" (revolution), he moved to Lisbon,
He already organized "corridas"in France and even in Greece,
but he says that these days are no longer as before.
I've earned good money, as in any business.
Right now, it's easier to lose €25.000 than to earn €2.500.
The public is essential to any show.
Without bulls there wouldn't exist "forcados", bullfighters or bullfighting.
They´re the main actors in a show,
which for them is always a "corrida" (run) for death.
João Moura and his son practice on calves, almost daily.
This one is about 1 year old.
Before entering the arena,
they cut off his horns in a way, that the animal didn't stop bleeding.
And the fact of being just a calf,
did not stop her from being stabbed with several "banderillas", during training.
The end of all tauromachy activities has long been required,
by defenders of animals rights.
In our opinion, It´s intolerable, even as an example for the future generations,
that in 21st century, the human being can enjoy and feel pleasure in a show,
which the protagonist, the bull, is tortured and then killed.
There are so many ways to have fun,
that today, under a civic point of view, there is no justification,
for humans to continue using animals just for fun.
People related to bullfighting feel uncomfortable
when animal cruelty is mentioned.
Madam, madam, madam...
The bull.... exclusively exists for bullfighting!
It is an animal that only exists for this purpose!
- Don't you think it's a cruel spectacle? - Not at all.
- Don't you think it's cruel to the bull? - Of course not.
Why?
Because it does not... because, because, because... who knows...
It's difficult to answer now.
Do you like animals?
Yes. Horses, bulls...
- Do you think you like bulls? - Yes. I like bulls.
- But you are willing to stab them? - Yes I am.
- And to kill them, eventually? - Yes, to kill them too.
Do you think that is a way of liking?
I don´t know...but the profession requires it. It has to be this way.
- Did you ever feel sorry for a bull? - No. No, I don´t think so.
And here are some examples of the pros and cons of bullfights main arguments.
Bullfighting is already one of the few traditional shows we have in Portugal.
The society progresses and its cultural component must also progress.
If it were not for bullfighting, at this time, this bull breed would be extinct.
There are thousands, many thousands of different species of wild animals,
which are not used in shows,
nor treated in a cruel manner, just for humans to have fun,
which are being protected, such as lions and elephants...
The bull is born for bullfights.
This bull breed is created just for being handled in bullfights.
The bull does not need to be aggressive, precisely because he is a herbivore,
and therefore it does not need to hunt, he is not a predator,
he feeds on grass...
The bulls do not suffer in bulfights...
- They may suffer later... - Why do you say that?
Because this bull breed was created for this. This bull was created fot this... doesn't...doesn't...
He was... His genetics doesn't let him suffer.
The bull suffers a lot!
If a fly touches him, he removes it with his tail. He is a hyper-sensitive animal.
There are much more cruel things, for instance, Boxing.
Soccer is also a violent sport.
People who don't like "corridas", should inform themselves first,
about what a "corrida" really is.
- Have you ever been in a bullfight? - Yes.
- How was it? - It was awful.
Fortunately, I never went to a bullfight, I'll never go to a bullfight,
because I refuse to participate in situations in which animals are being tortured.
Those who sit on the grandstands and go wild with the show,
have the same right to like as they have to dislike.
We are free to like what we like. Only the ones that like, go to the arena.
The bullfighters may like bulls more then those who preach friendship for the animals.
Those people's way of being is harmful to society.
Look, those people that preach this, why do they eat meat?
Why do they eat fish? Why do they eat chicken?
Bullfighting fans and animal defenders rarely discuss their arguments face to face.
Generally, they only meet when there are anti bullfighting protests,
in front of bullrings.
In the last five years, I've been in 99% of anti bullfighting protests,
and in those 99%, I never saw a single animal defender,
trying to attack a bullfight fan, nor a bullfighter or a "forcado",
but I've always seen the opposite.
"Take that shit off!"
"Take that shit off! Fuck!"
Take that fucking shit off!
We do not use masks, we do not pinch anyone.
They dressed as priests, nuns, bishops...
It's an aggression too much strong to those that don't harm them.
Indifferent to men's wars, bulls wander quietly in the fields.
Tomorrow, they will be put inside trucks and taken to the bullring.
In the arena, they will fight the only battle in a war they will surely lose.
It's morning and in the bullring, they're already working.
There is plenty to do on "corrida" days.
THE BULLFIGHT
These men are the corral workers.
They are the ones that prepare the bulls before entering the arena.
In the corrals the animals are restless.
Even worse would be if they knew what is going to happen with them.
The bulls are led to this small room, and immobilized with a pole and ropes.
Only then the corral workers cut the tips from their horns.
In the end, they put them leather protections.
The corral workers say that the bulls horns are padded,
to avoid hurting "forcados" and horses.
Meanwhile, Luís Rouxinol relaxes at home before going to the bullring.
And nothing more inspiring than seeing a Spanish-style corrida.
Whenever I come to the "corridas", I bring these saints which I carry with me.
As soon as I arrive the hotel, the first thing I do is to place them...
in this case, was in this little table...
...we were trying to find a place to put them... ...we had to remove other things...
...in order to do my prayers, before going to the "corrida",
and then thank them, when I return.
- And you always bring the same? - Yes, I always bring the same.
Sometimes, I have exceptions...I'll... for instance, show you the bullfighters saint,
It's Bacarena...one of the saints that I never forget, although, I also never forget the others,
but this one is like indispensable... I also carry it in the coat.
In the bullring, the horses must be warmed up.
The "forcados" also prepare themselves to another adrenaline moment.
When the "corrida" begins, they all are ready... or almost all.
The fighting, bull vs. human, is totally unfair,
since the animal is in an environment, which is absolutely hostile for him.
He doesn't understand anything of what is happening,
and he is panicked.
He hears too much noises, he is attacked, stabbed, he feels pain,
He can not understand anything of what is happening.
Faced with the fear and panic, the bull attacks. He reacts by attacking.
That's why they call him brave.
He is apparently brave, but only because he's afraid.
But in the bullring nobody cares about the bull feelings.
And many, do not imagine that after leaving the arena,
the bulls have to go through another bad patch,
They are tied up again, to withdraw the "banderillas".
The "corrida's" director didn't let us shoot.
He claimed that would be too impressive to the public.
Here is the sound of the bulls protest,
while men tear their flesh, to remove the "banderillas".
In the meanwhile, in the grandstands,
the audience vibrates with the stabs of the bullfighters.
But they get really excited, when something goes wrong.
"Eh eh eh!"
"Eh! Fuck it!"
Two hours later, the "corrida" is finished.
They all have done well.
"Forcados" and bullfighters now only dream with their rest
and a shower.
After the "corrida", I'll take a bath and have a relaxed dinner with my family.
In the corrals, the bulls are not entitled to have dinner or water,
not even to a disinfectant for healing their wounds.
They'll have to wait that the nearest slaughterhouse opens, to be killed then.
If the "corrida" is on Saturday,
they'll only be slaughtered on the next Monday morning.
Sometimes, when a bull stands out by his bravery,
a bull breeder may decide to spare his life and use him for reprodution,
but the truth is that in this "corrida", from all the animals,
none deserved the mercy of men.
Each year are diverted to bullfighting, millions of Euros from Portuguese taxes, supposedly for agricultural purposes.
On 21/03/2012 was published in the Official Gazette, the list of grants awarded by IFAP, in the second half of 2011.
In 2011, the IFAP awarded grants to companies and family members of bullfighting, amounting €9,823,004.34:
In just five years (2006-2011), the bullfighting families received about €31,243,390.52, in grants from IFAP
Over € 6,000,000.00 per year, in grants:
The bulls are not aggressive. These animals are by nature equally or even more friendly than dogs.
Fadjen, a mediatic bull, rescued from a Spanish bull breeder, it's now an excellent example that the bull aggressiveness,
is nothing but a myth, touted by bullfighting people.
Ethology explains that the behavior is not determined by genetics but by environmental and animal interactions.
Regardless of genetic traits, animal behavior is always conditioned, ultimately, by the purpose and character of those who create them.
In order to make bulls more responsive, so that they can fight them, the bull breeders create them in an extensive system,
with very little contact with humans, subjecting them to harsh training at all levels. The physical ones are worthy of a high competition athlete.
Occasionally, some die suddenly due to excessive effort to which they are subjected.
Sometimes bulls are drugged with "Rompum" and "Calmivet". Two anesthetic substances which when administered in small quantities,
cause a calming effect. But the "right" dose isn't always well calculated, leading some to die from an overdose, even before entering the arena.
Science has proven a long time ago, that all sentient beings, group of which human beings are part of,
have the capacity to experience physical and psychological suffering, such as stress, fear, panic, anxiety and sadness.
They suffer psychological trauma and develop depressions too, as well as affections and even build relationships with other beings, including humans.
In the ability to feel, the animals are no different from humans.
The bull is entitled to his physical and psychological integrity, and especially has the right not to be used as a subject of torture,
to the delight of a minority that is not even representative of the Portuguese people.
As many other species, the bull may well live in freedom and peacefully in their habitat, even if it's in protected areas,
so, the preservation argument, as a justification of bullfighting, is not acceptable.
It's not admissible, that in the 21st century, a civilized country like Portugal,
may host, a tradition that violates 90% of the main points of the UNESCO's Universal Declaration of Animal Rights:
1 - All animals have the same right to live.
2 - All animals are entitled to be respected and protected by man.
3 - No animal should be mistreated.
4 - All wild animals have the right to live free in their habitat.
5 - The animal that man chooses for companion, should never be abandoned.
6 - No animal should be used in experiments that cause him pain.
7 - Any act which endangers the life of an animal is a crime against life.
8 - Pollution and environmental destruction are considered crimes against animals.
9 - Animal rights must be defended by law.
10 - Man must be educated from childhood to observe, respect and understand animals.
But It isn't just animal rights, the ones violated by bullfighting.
Psychology, psychiatry, neuroscience and others have shown that watching bullfights causes psychological trauma in children,
making them tolerant to violence and leading the adults to aggressivity.
This was one of the arguments that led to the abolition of bullfighting in Catalonia, in Spain, where tradition was much stronger than in Portugal.
Scientific Studies:
Reedited by:
In this video, were used parts from "Grande Reportagem - Red and Black", broadcasted on SIC Television, in 2003, by:
Journalist: Cameraman: Edition: