The licensing and the organisation of bullfighting shows will now be subject to a specific general regulation in the Azores, which was approved at the Azorean Parliament last Friday.
The new regulation will be applied to all shows that include wild bulls, particularly with regard to square races, popular “novilhadas” (bullfights with bulls under the age of four), mixed races and bullfighting festivals, and comprises all public and private promoters.
With the necessary amendments, its application will also cover popular “novilhadas” and “variedades taurinas,” which are considered as public entertainment subject to municipal licensing.
This new scheme is not applied to the remaining shows and bullfighting entertainment such as “touradas à corda” (bullfight on rope), “garraidas” (bullfight with bulls under than three years old) “vacadas,” “largadas” (bull releases), “vacas em cerrado” and “bezerradas” (bullfight with young bulls), which are subject to municipal licensing and specific regulations in the archipelago.
Proposed by the Government, the General Regulation of Bullfighting Shows of the Autonomous Region of the Azores also stipulates the licensing conditions, the organisation and monitoring of shows as well as of the venues, animals and the artists involved.
Moreover, the new scheme estimates the creation of a Regional Commission for Bullfighting which will act as an advisory and propose the necessary measures for the development of the sector, analysing the success of the season every year. This commission, which includes representatives from several entities related to bullfighting, will also be in charge of regulating the classification to be awarded to the bullrings.
The regulation also includes the creation, through the Regional Directorate of Culture, of a body of bullfighting technical delegates, composed by the race directors and veterinarians with the competence to direct the show, since the preliminary operations to its finalisation and ensure the safety and welfare conditions.
By presenting the document, the Regional Secretary of the Presidency justified that legislative initiative with the need to establish a regulation adapted to the island reality and reminded that the Azores have a “rich, genuine and specific tradition” with regard to bullfighting.
Concerning the several general goals of the new regulation, André Bradford also mentioned the purpose of “uniting the legislation on issues related to bullfighting in a single document, thus facilitating its understanding, consultation and implementation.”
Until now the licensing and organisation of bullfighting shows in the Azores was regulated by two national documents which had been adopted in 1991.