New interministerial directive: the State's unwavering support for circuses with animals
One Voice has obtained a directive signed by the Ministers of the Interior and Regional Planning and sent out to prefectures at the end of April 2025. The intention is clear: to encourage town councils to accept the installation of travelling circuses in their municipalities and to invite prefects to monitor the decisions of local councillors who oppose them. One Voice condemns this position which clearly demonstrates that the State does not care about the fate of captive animals, and urges it to carry out inspections of circuses and enforce the law on animal welfare.
“To facilitate access to public land for fairground and circus professionals”: the tone is (once again) set. It is with this unambiguous sentence that the ministers began their latest ministerial directive on the reception of travelling circuses on municipal territory. The aim? To remind prefects that mayors cannot refuse to allow the installation of circuses on the grounds that they exploit wild animals, as the ban will only apply from 2028.
Professionals of abuse
In 2021, we denounced this same position taken by the State, which, instead of anticipating the placement in sanctuaries of animals whose ownership was soon to be banned, prefers to encourage their continued confinement in cage trucks for as long as possible.
In recent years, we have secured the conviction of multiple animal trainers, proving what we have always denounced: circus performers do not love their animals “like family”, but are only interested in the money they bring in.
Among others:
- Several members of the Gougeon family from the Cirque de Paris: found guilty at first instance (confirmed on appeal) of abuse committed against the lion Jon and the lionesses Céleste, Patty, Hannah and Marli, and sentenced to two months’ suspended imprisonment, five fines, a ban on working with animals and the permanent confiscation of the big cats.
- Teddy Gougeon and Antonia Fleury from the Cirque William Zavatta: found guilty of mistreatment committed by a professional, sentenced to six months’ suspended imprisonment and banned from keeping non-domestic animals for five years. The three lions involved in the complaint were never found.
- Mario Masson: found guilty of mistreatment committed by a professional against ten tigers that he kept permanently locked up in a lorry, illegal operation of an establishment housing non-domestic animals from 2019 to 2020, illegal acquisition and sale of animals, as well as labour law violations and fraud.
- Gilbert Bauer, trainer of the elephant Baby who was locked up in a lorry when not performing.
- Alexandre Muller, convicted for not having the necessary permits to keep the hippopotamus Jumbo, in addition to mistreating him.
- The Poliakov couple, who exploited the bears Micha, Bony and Glasha, were found guilty — although they received very light sentences.
- Not to mention the numerous ongoing proceedings for which we are awaiting court dates.
Forcing circuses with animals to comply with the law? Not at all…
In this ministerial note, there is not a word about installations by force; nothing to guide local councils or help them deal with the excesses of circus operators who take over public land without authorisation and threaten those who try to stop them: the Mullers, who own Jumbo, are specialists in this field: in the Alpes-Maritimes, Vaucluse and Gard regions, most — if not all — of their shows take place completely illegally.
In Ile-de-France and Strasbourg, their cousin, the owner of the Cirque Franco-Belge, is no exception.
The same is true of the Cirque d’Europe, where Max Aucante has continued to exploit Samba with an iron fist for decades, and which the mayor of Noisy-le-Grand had opposed.
In such cases, the State is conspicuous by its absence, leaving local authorities to fend for themselves in resolving the situation.
The State as an accomplice
Surprising? Not really, when you consider that the State itself does not respect the law. Since 1 December 2023, the breeding of wild animals has been prohibited in travelling establishments. Yes, but… the implementation order that is supposed to define the ban and provide for penalties has still not been published. As a result, baby animals continue to be born illegally, swelling the ranks of those who will inevitably have to be placed in sanctuaries if they escape all the different kinds of shady deals and trafficking…
This new directive is yet another proof – if any were needed – that our leaders could not care less about the suffering of animals being exploited for entertainment. Perhaps they are waiting for each and every one of them to die in lorries and under big tops before ending up at the taxidermist’s so that they don’t have to bother finding places in sanctuaries? Join us in calling for a (real!) ban on animals in circuses