Pamplona’s second bull run held in honor of 1978 Sanfermines victims
Pamplona, Spain, Jul 8 (EFE).- The Spanish northern city of Pamplona entered on Friday the third day of the emblematic Sanfermines festival with lots of music, dancing and the second bull run of the fiesta.
The running of the bulls — in which hundreds of people sprint down an 875-meter (just over half a mile) course through the streets of Pamplona ahead of a herd of rampaging cattle — was held in honor of the victims of the 1978 Sanfermines festival in which violent clashes between police and citizens left one person dead and 150 injured.
The clashes broke out after 40 police officers burst into the Pamplona bullring, where some 20,000 people were gathered, to stop a group of citizens who had rolled out a banner demanding amnesty for prisoners fighting for the Basque region’s independence.
Over 40 years later, the Sanfermines 78 collective are demanding justice for Germán Rodríguez, who was shot dead by police but whose case was never brought to court.
Friday’s run lasted 3 minutes, 10 seconds after one of the bulls from the Fuente Ymbro ranch stalled at the start of the route.
Medical officials confirmed eight people were taken to hospital for lashes and bruises.
Over 530 events including concerts, open-air dances, exhibitions and children’s activities have been programmed alongside the main event, the running of the bulls.
The runs are interspersed with huge meals, copious amounts of wine and beer, parades, musical performances and general revelry spread out across the city, where the 200,000-strong population of Pamplona is joined by hundreds of thousands of visitors who flock there every year from across the globe.EFE
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