KEY POINTS:
The New Zealand Rodeo Association has condemned a decision to ban rodeos in Auckland as unfair and undemocratic.
In a New Zealand first, the Auckland City Council has passed an animal bylaw preventing rodeo events from being organised on its land.
The ban was decided after a submission
from Save Animals From Exploitation (Safe).
Gary Jackson, the New Zealand Rodeo Association's animal welfare spokesman and former president, said the council had not consulted the association.
"We've never had any say at all. The fact that the council can take the word of only one group of people involved is totally undemocratic."
He said the ban was "a joke" because the association had not held a rodeo on Auckland City Council land since 1977.
But he did not want to see other councils following suit and was concerned that the democratic process had not been followed.
Cathy Casey, one of the three councillors who heard the submission, said the bylaw and motion were unanimously passed because of animal welfare concerns. She said Safe presented a strong case and the ban showed the council was against rodeos.
"It's a different philosophy," she said. "I disagree we should use animals as some means of entertainment."
Rodeo events are usually run on private land, when affiliated clubs invite them to provide entertainment.
Hans Kriek, Safe's campaign director, welcomed the ban, saying the organisation had been trying to stop rodeos in New Zealand for the past 20 years.
Mr Kriek said there was "little point" in consulting the New Zealand Rodeo Association on its submission to the council because it had vastly different views.
He hoped other councils would follow Auckland City Council's example. Rodeos were "cruel on a lot of different levels" and involved stress to animals.
"It sends really bad messages to families and children about how we should treat animals," Mr Kriek said.
Mr Jackson, however, said rodeo animals were ridden only a few times a year for seconds at a time, and for the rest of the year were left to graze.
Stock inspectors conducted regular visits and rodeos saved hundreds of animals each year that would otherwise be killed.
In terms of violence to animals, "nothing could be further from the truth", and it was a popular family activity.
