Thousands of anti-bullfighting protesters have marched through Madrid calling for the tradition to end. It comes as the Balearic islands voted in July to effectively end the so-called sport. So what chance is there that bullfighting will soon be banned across Spain? CGTN's Dan Williams went to find out.

 

Guadalajara is a small city 60 kilometres north of Madrid. And Residents were out in force for an evening of bullfighting. Part fiesta and carnival, the event is supported by locals young and old.

 

Those here struggle to understand why animal rights campaigners want to end the tradition. "I think that people who don't like bullfighting should just not come. But they must respect us and let everybody do what they like." "I think the people against bullfighting are just bored and have nothing better to do than bother us. I ask them to stop."

 

The first bull into the ring is a five-year old weighing 456 kilograms. A team work together to wear the bull down. A so called 'picador' on a horse stabs a lance into the neck of the bull, striking a first blow. Then Banderillos plant barbed sticks into the bull's shoulders weakening the bull further. Before the matador begins a routine that ends in the bull's death.

 

DAN WILLIAMS GUADALAJARA "At a glance, it would appear that bullfighting here in Spain has never been more popular. But across the country, there are movements aiming to stop the tradition."

 

Thousands of protesters march through Madrid calling for bullfighting to be banned. Their message, 'torture is not culture.' The fight between the two sides is intensifying. A ban on bullfighting in Catalonia was lifted last year by Spain's Constitutional court. But in July, the Balearic Islands voted in favour of an animal protection law that bans the use of sharp implements. That measure effectively bans bullfighting.

 

ANA BEJAR PACMA "We've got the support of the vast majority of Spanish society. According to numbers from the cultural ministry, only nine percent of people in Spain support bullfighting. So it does not matter whether the government is still allowing it, if people are against it."

 

But bullfighting lobby groups are also fighting back. They argue that the tradition is a key part of Spanish heritage.

 

ALEJANDRA OLIVER FUNDACION TORO DE LIDIA "If the people decide that bullfighting is indeed culture and they want bullfights, you can't impose your vision and ban it because you don't like it. That's why we will defend bullfighting not only in the Balearic Islands, but also all across Spain."

 

For now, for the thousands in attendance here, bullfighting continues. The question though is for how long. Dan Williams CGTN Guadalajara, Spain.