By Wendy Anders

Along with tamales, ronpope (spiced rum), and school vacations, December and January also bring typical bullfights or “corridas de toros” to many small towns across Costa Rica, and with them, divided opinions and strong feelings.

A recent survey by the National University in Heredia, Costa Rica found that 46.4 percent of Costa Ricans agree or strongly agree to ban the bull ring spectacles, and 50.13 percent disagree or strongly disagree with such a measure, with the remaining 3.47 percent undecided.

Although the study did not explore the reasons for people’s opinions, “those who oppose bullfights may do so because they consider this practice a form of animal abuse, while supporters see corridas as part of the country’s traditions and don’t feel they violate animal rights,” said an article on the topic in the country’s main Spanish daily, La Nación.

The study also asked about other issues related to the perception of animals and  revealed that, across the board, Costa Ricans are against using animals for human entertainment especially in ways that injure them:

• 87.6 percent feel that cockfighting should not be allowed.
• 88 percent believe dog fights should not be allowed
• 97.1 percent say that it is important for Costa Rica to have legislation to prevent animal abuse
• 96.5 percent think the law should establish fines for those who commit abuse against animals.

The survey, conducted by the Institute for Social Science and Population Studies (Idespo) at the National University (UNA) interviewed 800 Costa Ricans (or foreigners with more than two years of residence in the country) by telephone between September 19 and 30.

The results have a margin of error of 3.5 percent.