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Last week Manuel Trindade, 22, died after being fatally struck by a bull at Campo Pequeno in Lisbon. He was treated in the infirmary and then transported to São José hospital, where he died less than 24 hours later.

The tragedy shook the entire country and the bullfighting community.

Manuel died while trying to catch a bull head-on. The young man was part of the Grupo de Forcados Amadores de São Manços, one of Portugal’s oldest troupes. He advanced, one foot in front of the other, towards an animal weighing around 700 kg, already marked by splinters. Exclusive to Portuguese bullfighting, the forcados perform, standing at the same level as the animal, without weapons or protection, after the bullfighting riders have finished.

It was the young man’s first attempt to catch a bull and his first time performing in the emblematic Campo Pequeno bullring, which has a seating capacity of around 9,000. Trindade was following a family tradition, walking in the footsteps of his father who was also part of the São Manços group.

The case has reignited a heated debate about bullfighting in Portugal, and the arguments, for and against, have hit new depths on social media. Easy and immediate, Trindade’s death generated an avalanche of comments, including those lamenting the tragedy and sending messages of condolence to the families, those lamenting the death but also recalling the alleged consequences of an activity they believe no longer has a place in Portugal and, finally, hateful comments about the boy and the activity he represented, including “celebrations” of the young man’s death.

“If you have the courage, celebrate”: A grieving mother hits back

“I’ve come to thank you for all your applause, all the laughter and rejoicing at my son’s death. Did you know him to be happy about his death? Do you know if he loved animals?” This is how Alzira Beringel, Manuel Trindade’s mother, began what she called an “outburst”.

This reaction came just a few days after her son’s death and is a response to the comments that have appeared on social media. In the note, she also says that the young man donated his organs and “will live on in seven people to bother you”.

“I had promised myself I wouldn’t read your clever comments, but there were some ‘so nice’ that I couldn’t take it and I had to thank you for your support and affection. We still live in a democratic country, where everyone is free to like what they like and it’s nobody else’s business,” Alzira wrote on Facebook, in an “outburst” also directed at the People Animals Nature (PAN) political party.

PAN speaks of “abnormality that must end”

PAN has as one of its main banners the abolition of bullfighting in Portugal. The party’s spokesperson and member of parliament (MP) reacted immediately to what had happened. On social media, Inês Sousa Real spoke of an “abnormality that must stop”.

“Adults die, young teenagers die, there are always serious injuries, and the animals tortured in the arena suffer atrociously,” reads the MP’s Instagram post, which also addresses the death of the young bullfighter.

“Regardless of the circumstances – because I am unconditionally against bullfighting – the death of a young man of just 22 is always to be regretted and we must respect the bereaved family,” she wrote.

Inês Sousa Real’s party sent a letter to the government this week calling for the suspension of bullfighting shows in Lisbon’s Campo Pequeno and submitted a proposal to Parliament to prevent minors from entering bullfights.

A few days later, the party itself had to write a note denouncing “false and defamatory information about PAN regarding the tragic death of Manuel Maria Trindade, a 22-year-old who lost his life in a bullfight,” according to the party, published on pages linked to bullfighting.

“PAN did not rejoice, nor would it ever rejoice, at the death of a young man under any circumstances,” they explain in the publication. “At no time, in our interventions or public comments, was the suffering of his family or those who witnessed this tragedy disrespected.”

Also reacting to the controversy was the IRA, a non-governmental organisation providing assistance to civil protection and animal rescue. It took too to social media to deliver a a direct response to the statements made by Trindade’s mother.

The IRA said it “deeply regrets the pain she is going through, a pain that no mother should have to endure” and that it is “natural for her to feel anger at the criticism, because at that moment the wound is open and the heart speaks louder”.

In the publication, the group also said that it is “inevitable to recognise that the real culprit is not the critical voices, but the event itself – a spectacle that continues to put at risk not only the animals, but also the humans that take part in it”.

A “tradition” dating back to the 13th century

Barbarism for some, tradition for others. Bullfighting is deeply rooted in Portugal, especially in specific regions linked to the countryside and farming. It is one of the oldest traditions in the country, with deep roots in Ribatejo, Alentejo and the Azores.

The activity is considered by many to be part of Portugal’s cultural heritage and was legally recognised as a cultural activity in 2014, including it in the specific legislation on shows of an artistic nature.

According to bullfighting tourism and information site Touradas, the first references to bullfighting in Portugal date back to 1258, during the reign of King Afonso III. The same site indicates that forcados gradually appeared in this bullfighting art, with the first written mention dating back to 1661.

Unlike Spain and France, bullfighting is not allowed in the square. The first effective ban on killing bulls in Portugal dates back to 1928, at the beginning of the Estado Novo (New State). The 1928 law was repealed in 2002, and bullfighting was once again allowed in Portugal in places where there had been an uninterrupted tradition of this practice for 50 years. At the moment, the places where it is permitted to kill animals in the arena are Barrancos and Monsaraz.

The heated debate has shown no sign of cooling down, week on with the Campo Pequeno hosting a bullfight on 5 September headed by Peru’s Andrés Roca Rey, one of the world’s leading bullfighters.