China Holding Belgian Pigeons

Tia Oja,

Correspondent (Europe)

 

BRUSSELS — The Guardian recently reported about pigeons being held hostage by the Chinese government due to an import dispute with Belgium.

According to the paper, the Belgian ambassador has been able to negotiate the freedom for approximately 400 pigeons so far. Among these 400 pigeons was a pigeon named Bolt, who was sold at an auction in Belgium for a whopping 3,10,000 euros. The Belgian pigeon traders’ (PIPA) chief executive, Nikolaas Gyselbrecht, personally flew over to Beijing to negotiate face-to-face with the Chinese officials for the release of Bolt.

All in all, more than 1,000 pigeons have been held in custody since July. Pigeon keeping as well as pigeon racing are very expensive hobbies. The Guardian states that an upcoming pigeon race in Beijing will offer the winner £2.3 million. Chinese enthusiasts have spent huge amounts of money on the pigeons confiscated by the Chinese officials.

Belgium is a strong provider in the market of top-notch racing pigeons. The country has a long history of pigeon racing as the modern version of this unique sport originated from mid-19^th century Belgium.

The pigeon dispute is not surprising on China’s part, as it merely seems to be one import quarrel amongst others. China has been frequently on the news for the past year because of import disputes with various different countries over various different items such as solar panels.

The faith of rest of the Belgian pigeons remains to be seen. However, it can be said that the Belgian embassy has taken a large role in the negotiations for freeing the pigeons. Whether this incident affects the Belgian export business of racing pigeons is still uncertain.

Image Courtesy: Wikimedia Commons