The beginning of 2026 in the municipality of Barbosa, Santander, was marked by a strong controversy that has Mayor Marco Alirio Cortés at the center of the hurricane.
Despite a preventive warning issued by the Attorney General’s Office on December 29, the mayor’s office decided to maintain the bullfight in Barbosa scheduled for January 1.
The decision generated immediate rejection by animal rights groups, social activists and political leaders who traveled to the municipality to demonstrate peacefully.
Among those attending the sit-in were Chamber representative Cristian Avendaño, deputy Danovis Lozano, Bucaramanga councilor Camilo Machado and former councilor Carlos Parra, who denounced a hostile environment on the part of some attendees at the bullfighting event.
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The controversy escalated after several videos circulated on social networks in which Mayor Cortés is observed making intimidating gestures and uttering offensive expressions, presumably in a state of excitement.
According to the complainants, this attitude would have encouraged physical and verbal attacks against the protesters, including the throwing of objects such as cans and bottles.
Despite the climate of tension, the president entered the stage and allowed the bullfight to take place, a fact that was recorded in videos where fights between attendees are also evident.
On the other hand, Deputy Lozano also denounced the alleged presence of minors at the event.
From the legal field, Senator Andrea Padilla and citizen organizations maintain that the mayor would have exceeded his powers, given that Barbosa does not have an uninterrupted bullfighting tradition, which would make this type of spectacle illegal according to Law 2385 of 2024 and constitutional jurisprudence.
Given these events, citizen groups formally requested the Attorney General’s Office to open a disciplinary investigation, and the Attorney General’s Office to evaluate possible criminal conduct such as instigation of violence and animal abuse.
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