A Chinese Pigeon Spy is Liberated!
New Delhi, Feb 2 (EFE).-
A pigeon, captured eight months ago and detained at a veterinary hospital in India’s Mumbai, has been set free after being cleared of charges of spying for China.
The free flight of the bird has ended a plot that caught the attention of animal rights groups.
The bird was held at Bai Sakarbai Dinshaw Animal Hospital (BSDPHA) in Mumbai.
It was released on Tuesday after the police granted the veterinary facility a release permit, lawyer Meet Ashar, legal advisor to the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) India, told EFE.
In May 2023, the police found the pigeon wearing two rings with a message on its wings in illegible writing, which led to suspicion of spying and caused police to seize the bird.
PETA intervened in the case after the veterinary facility, which offers care and rescue for any injured animal, requested permission for the release months ago.
“The (police) process is complete. If the bird is medically stable, the police station has no objections to its release,” the police said in the release certificate.
Authorities have not commented so far on the thesis of their investigation or the reasons for the suspicions. Nor the possible origin or route of the pigeon, about 2,000 km from the border with China.
PETA India receives about 1,000 calls a week for animal emergencies, but it was their first case of an alleged spy who needed to be freed from wrongful imprisonment, said Ashar.
“Now, the pigeon is finally free to fly through the skies as all birds should be allowed to do,” the lawyer said.
According to the Hindustan Times daily, the pigeon was used for open-water races in Taiwan. In one of those competitions, it crossed the border and landed in India, covering a journey of at least 5,000 km.
These races are also considered a form of animal torture.
“Like all birds, pigeons should be free to soar in the skies, forage for food, and raise their young as a couple, cooperatively with their mates,” said PETA India Director Poorva Joshipura in a statement.
The statement noted that pigeons have their own culture, mate for life, dote on their young, and pass the “mirror test,” demonstrating self-awareness and intelligence.
“But around the world, these remarkable birds are denigrated as ‘pests’ and even used for racing, an industry in which they face mass suffering and death.” EFE
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