It is not just the main players involved who have strong opinions on this matter. La Asociación Defensa de los Derechos del Animal (ADDA) has been fighting for years to get the city council to enforce the law, according to co-ordinator Francina Ballester. “The animals are locked up overnight, with no ventilation and have to withstand any rain or bad weather. Some animals bought there die very quickly, because they have had contact with ‘street birds’. It’s a disaster.”
However, Mónica Trias defended her work, and said that there is a fast turnover of the animals she sells, which are mainly for specialists. “All the cages have been checked by vets. Everything here is super-controlado. They are only here for a week or 10 days. I wouldn’t be able to sell them if they weren’t healthy.”
Inevitably, Barcelona’s residents have also become part of the debate. The ocellaires and ADDA have had petitions running, with support received for both sides of the argument. Alfred Bosch is a Catalan writer and journalist who lives just off La Rambla and recently wrote a novel entitled Hereteràs La Rambla (You Will Inherit La Rambla). He said, “I've seen the cages all my life. It's part of life here. As long as they are kept in good conditions and the animals aren’t mistreated, it’s all right.'”
Still, the image of caged animals and birds on display can be unnerving for some. Many of the tourists that Metropolitan spoke to were in favour of closing the animal stands. “It’s so cruel, I can’t even look at them,” commented one woman visiting from the US, and others echoed her feelings.
The divergent opinions regarding the fate of the bird sellers reflect the larger issue facing La Rambla. Although in this case the question of animal rights will ultimately make the difference, the conflict effectively highlights the difficulties that a principal street faces when it is also a major tourist attraction. Everyone interviewed for this article mentioned the conflict present in La Rambla between locals going about their day-to-day lives, and tourists here to see the sights.
Alfred Bosch and Mónica Trias talked about the heavy impact of tourism that they had seen. Bosch spoke of La Rambla “being abandoned by locals and an invasion by visitors,” while Trias described “being colonised by tourists.” They accept there is a difference between travellers and guiris, between those who are interested in what they see and come to learn, and those simply looking for the cheapest sangria and Mexican sombreros. However, among long-time denizens of the Rambla, there is a sense they are losing control of decisions affecting their lives.
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