Anti-bullfight ad rejected by French watchdog 22 August 2007 A TV commercial exposing the barbarity of bullfighting in France has been rejected by the country's advertising watchdog. Pointing to the scenes of violence, the BVP advised against broadcasting of the ad. French groups have criticised the decision and are renewing their demands for an outright ban on the blood sport. Societe Protectrice des Animaux, the animal welfare organisation which produced the advert, is calling for international support for its appeal to the French President. Please take a look at different versions of the rejected advert and join us in asking President Sarkozy to rid France of bullfighting. Thank you. Scenes from the rejected bullfighting advert A selection of still images from the rejected anti-bullfighting advert. To view the actual ad, please scroll down and click on the links. A matador plunges a sword between the shoulder blades of a bull in a French bullring. A tortured bull collapses to the ground during a bullfight in the South of France. A weakened and confused bull walks slowly across a bullring. Please join the campaign against bullfighting in France by responding to the action alert below. Rejected bullfighting advert Rejected Ad - Version 1 Rejected Ad - Version 2 Rejected Ad - Version 3 ACTION ALERT Please write to the French President and urge him to finally ban bullfighting. Send a copy of your correspondence to the Culture Minister. Mr Nicolas Sarkozy French President Palais de l'Elysee 55 rue de Varenne 75008 Paris France Email: emmanuelle.mignon@elysee.fr; claude.gueant@elysee.fr; franck.louvrier@elysee.fr Tel: +(33)1 42 92 81 00 Fax: +(33)1 47 42 24 65 Mrs Christine Albanel French Culture and Communication Minister Email: michele.fayt@culture.gouv.fr Sample Letter (Please compose your own personal letter if possible. If you do not have time to do this, please send the short sample letter below. Be assertive, but polite, in all correspondence. Thank you.) Dear President Sarkozy I have watched the shocking television advert produced by Societe Protectrice des Animaux and am horrified to learn that bullfighting remains legal in the South of France. Bullfighting is one of the world's worst forms of animal cruelty and it should have no place in a modern and civilised country like France. I urge you to act immediately to bring bullfighting to an end in your country. Thank you. I look forward to your reply. Yours sincerely, Name/Location Bullfighting: More information Action Alerts | Leaflet | Photos | Videos | Petition | Links News Menu | Join | Top | Home