Jumilla’s ban on gatherings in public sports centres breaches right to religious freedom, says Madrid

 

 

Spain's central government has swiftly intervened after a town banned religious gatherings in public sports centres, branding it discriminatory and a breach of religious freedom, largely affecting Muslims.

 

Ángel Víctor Torres, Spain’s minister for territorial policy, declared: “There can be no half-measures when it comes to intolerance.” He criticised right-wing parties for trying to control religious freedom.

 

The controversy erupted in Jumilla, a town in Murcia, where the conservative-led council endorsed a ban. This ban impacted the town's 1,500 Muslims who have used these facilities for Eid celebrations.

Driven by the far-right Vox party, the initial proposal to ban Islamic festivals was amended by the People’s Party (PP) to bar “cultural, social or religious activities foreign to the city council.” Vox pushed for this in return for supporting the town’s budget.

 

As Vox hailed it as a victory against Islamic festivals, the backlash was immediate. A leading Muslim association decried it as "institutionalised Islamophobia," while Spain's migration minister, Elma Saiz, labelled it "shameful."

 

The PP defended its decision, denying any religious targeting, emphasising the coexistence of 72 nationalities in Jumilla. Mayor Seve González argued for campaigns to promote local cultural values.

In Madrid, the Socialist-led government criticised PP's alignment with the far right, suggesting it risks alienating citizens who contribute significantly to the local economy. Saiz highlighted the essential role of foreigners and reminded that Spain's rich history includes significant Muslim cultural contributions.

The Catholic Church and Federation of Jewish Communities also condemned the ban as a democratic setback. Catholic leaders called it discrimination, incompatible with religious freedom.

Vox leader Santiago Abascal expressed surprise at the Church's opposition, speculating its motivations linked to finances or past scandals.

 

The central government has given Jumilla a month to respond formally. If not addressed, further legal actions may be pursued to overturn the decision.

 

  Adapted by ASEAN Now from The Guardian 2025-08-12

 

 

 

Well, the reality is not like that:

 

Muslims have not been banned from celebrating the Feast of the Lamb. They have been banned from holding it in the municipal sports center, as it is not considered an appropriate place for the slaughter of thousands of lambs. It should be noted that Jumilla has two mosques in addition to other facilities where the "ceremony" could be held.

The government has not forced the city council to allow it, because legally it cannot. It has only issued a request to the city council to do so, for political reasons, but it is not mandatory.

It should be remembered that in rural Spain, it was once very common to celebrate the slaughter of the pig, where each family raised a pig year-round, and on Saint Martin's Day, the family would gather, slaughter the pig, and prepare sausages for the entire year.

This tradition was banned by law, as now only veterinarians can slaughter animals, it must be done in a facility specially designed for that purpose, and it was also considered cruel to slaughter a pig.

So many people are now wondering why a centuries-old Spanish tradition was banned, but Muslims are allowed to do exactly the same thing, and even in public.

 

 

1 hour ago, Espanol said:

 

Well, the reality is not like that:

 

Muslims have not been banned from celebrating the Feast of the Lamb. They have been banned from holding it in the municipal sports center, as it is not considered an appropriate place for the slaughter of thousands of lambs. It should be noted that Jumilla has two mosques in addition to other facilities where the "ceremony" could be held.

The government has not forced the city council to allow it, because legally it cannot. It has only issued a request to the city council to do so, for political reasons, but it is not mandatory.

It should be remembered that in rural Spain, it was once very common to celebrate the slaughter of the pig, where each family raised a pig year-round, and on Saint Martin's Day, the family would gather, slaughter the pig, and prepare sausages for the entire year.

This tradition was banned by law, as now only veterinarians can slaughter animals, it must be done in a facility specially designed for that purpose, and it was also considered cruel to slaughter a pig.

So many people are now wondering why a centuries-old Spanish tradition was banned, but Muslims are allowed to do exactly the same thing, and even in public.

 

 

Is that the reality? There are two issues here, (1) The holding of religious celebrations in municipal facilities (2) The places and methods used to slaughter animals. 

 

Wrt (1) why shouldn't municipal facilities be used? I am an atheist but as long as I am not expected to participate, I can't see why the facilities shouldn't be used for Christmas parties, Eid and Passover celebrations, etc? 

 

Wrt (2), is the government saying that the facilities can be used for the slaughter of animals?  There are EU laws designating how and where the slaughter of animals should take place although there are exceptions to these rules.

 

In any event, animal welfare regulations are - quite rightly imo - being tightened throughout Europe. Hopefully, fairly soon allowing religious groups exemption from these regulations will be a thing of the past.

 

https://www.brusselstimes.com/924527/ban-on-unstunned-slaughter-belgian-muslim-and-jewish-communities-dismayed

 

 

1 hour ago, RayC said:

 

Is that the reality? There are two issues here, (1) The holding of religious celebrations in municipal facilities (2) The places and methods used to slaughter animals. 

 

Wrt (1) why shouldn't municipal facilities be used? I am an atheist but as long as I am not expected to participate, I can't see why the facilities shouldn't be used for Christmas parties, Eid and Passover celebrations, etc? 

 

Wrt (2), is the government saying that the facilities can be used for the slaughter of animals?  There are EU laws designating how and where the slaughter of animals should take place although there are exceptions to these rules.

 

In any event, animal welfare regulations are - quite rightly imo - being tightened throughout Europe. Hopefully, fairly soon allowing religious groups exemption from these regulations will be a thing of the past.

 

https://www.brusselstimes.com/924527/ban-on-unstunned-slaughter-belgian-muslim-and-jewish-communities-dismayed

 

 

 

 

 

The problem is that the "religious celebration" that is being held at the municipal sports center is the "lamb festival," in which more than 2,000 lambs are sacrificed. The city council has deemed that a sports center is not the appropriate place for it and that there are more appropriate locations.

 

And since the municipal government is formed by the conservative Popular Party, in coalition with the right-wing VOX (analogous to Meloni's party in Italy, to put it mildly), the social-communist Spanish government immediately jumped in to attack them.

 

In other words, it's basically a political issue in which a simple municipal health and administrative matter has been exploited to try to turn it into an issue of racism, xenophobia, and anti-Islamism.

 

 

25 minutes ago, Espanol said:

 

 

 

The problem is that the "religious celebration" that is being held at the municipal sports center is the "lamb festival," in which more than 2,000 lambs are sacrificed. The city council has deemed that a sports center is not the appropriate place for it and that there are more appropriate locations.

 

And since the municipal government is formed by the conservative Popular Party, in coalition with the right-wing VOX (analogous to Meloni's party in Italy, to put it mildly), the social-communist Spanish government immediately jumped in to attack them.

 

In other words, it's basically a political issue in which a simple municipal health and administrative matter has been exploited to try to turn it into an issue of racism, xenophobia, and anti-Islamism.

 

 

 

An abattoir would be the appropriate place to slaughter 2000 lambs, these people with their beliefs and practices belong in the middle ages, quite revolting. They love playing the racism card, but Islam is a religion not a race, all races follow it, unfortunately.

42 minutes ago, Espanol said:

 

The problem is that the "religious celebration" that is being held at the municipal sports center is the "lamb festival," in which more than 2,000 lambs are sacrificed. The city council has deemed that a sports center is not the appropriate place for it and that there are more appropriate locations.

 

And since the municipal government is formed by the conservative Popular Party, in coalition with the right-wing VOX (analogous to Meloni's party in Italy, to put it mildly), the social-communist Spanish government immediately jumped in to attack them.

 

In other words, it's basically a political issue in which a simple municipal health and administrative matter has been exploited to try to turn it into an issue of racism, xenophobia, and anti-Islamism.

 

 

Your conclusion is spot on. 

59 minutes ago, Espanol said:

In other words, it's basically a political issue in which a simple municipal health and administrative matter has been exploited to try to turn it into an issue of racism, xenophobia, and anti-Islamism.

 

Welcome to 2025 where everything is labelled racist, xenophobic and Islamaphobic in order to further a political agenda. 

 

I hope Jumilla is allowed to respect its own culture instead of local people having another culture forced down its throat. 

 

But somehow I doubt it. 

 

Sad times in Spain and across Europe generally. 

 

45 minutes ago, proton said:

 

An abattoir would be the appropriate place to slaughter 2000 lambs, these people with their beliefs and practices belong in the middle ages, quite revolting. They love playing the racism card, but Islam is a religion not a race, all races follow it, unfortunately.

 

I agree that an abattoir is the appropriate place to slaughter animals and I'm surprised that Spain still allows slaughter to take place on a large scale elsewhere. On the positive side, pressure from animal welfare groups will probably mean that the practice is outlawed throughout the EU in the near future (it is in the UK).

 

I also agree that the ritual slaughter of an animal by slashing the throat before stunning it is a quite revolting practice which belongs to the Middle Ages. Outlawing this practice will, unfortunately, take much longer.

 

However, this has nothing to do with Muslims playing the racism card as you suggest and everything to do with followers of Islam AND Judaism playing the religious freedom card.

7 minutes ago, JonnyF said:

 

Welcome to 2025 where everything is labelled racist, xenophobic and Islamaphobic in order to further a political agenda. 

 

I hope Jumilla is allowed to respect its own culture instead of local people having another culture forced down its throat. 

 

But somehow I doubt it. 

 

Sad times in Spain and across Europe generally. 

 

 

Are you in favour of residents of Jumilla being able to celebrate St. Martin's Day by ritually slaughtering animals outside of abattoir?

5 hours ago, Espanol said:

it is not considered an appropriate place for the slaughter of thousands of lambs

 

Citation needed.

 

None of the MSM news reports I've seen have mentioned "the slaughter of thousands of lambs" in the stadium.

 

Is this a Fox talking point?

 

And would it be permissible if they dress the sheep up as bulls and torture them to death? 

 

More than 2,000 people enjoyed the bullfight held in Jumilla (13/08/2008)

Jumilla lived, on Sunday, a wonderful afternoon of bullfighting.

Pepin Liria got 3 ears and a tail, Rivera Ordonez got four ears and a tail and Alfonso Romero also 4 ears and a tail.

Despite high temperatures, the fans enjoyed the race and encouraged at all times to the slaughter.

 

https://www.portaldejumilla.com/article.asp?id=26270

 

Animal cruelty seems to be widespread, so what's the problem?

 

https://www.spain-traveller.com/en/bullfighting-festivals-in-spain/

19 hours ago, Espanol said:

They have been banned from holding it in the municipal sports center, as it is not considered an appropriate place for the slaughter of thousands of lambs.

Let's be honest, that would be the excuse, not the reason. 

I agree with the ban, BUT it should apply to ALL religions and not simply to one.

 

If you ban one religion, then you must ban them all.

3 hours ago, billd766 said:

I agree with the ban, BUT it should apply to ALL religions and not simply to one.

 

If you ban one religion, then you must ban them all.

 

I also agree with the ban, and your call for consistency. However, as @stevenlimplies animal welfare and (environmental) health concerns are not the main issues here.

5 hours ago, billd766 said:

I agree with the ban, BUT it should apply to ALL religions and not simply to one.

 

If you ban one religion, then you must ban them all.

 

Only one religion is wanting to slit the throats of 2000 lambs in a public venue, sick buggers 

1 hour ago, proton said:

 

Only one religion is wanting to slit the throats of 2000 lambs in a public venue, sick buggers 

 

What exactly are you objecting to? 1) The method of killing? 2) The fact that it is a public place? 3) The numbers involved? 4) A combination of the above? 5) Something else?

 

Re 1) and 2) As I stated previously, imo the killing of animals by slitting their throats before stunning them should be outlawed, as should the mass killing of animals outside of an abattoir. I also don't think that there should be a religious 'opt-out' clause. However, if there is an 'opt-out' it should be applied to all religions. That's only consistent and fair, don't you think?

 

Re 3) What's an acceptable number then?

 

Re 4) and 5): ?