Recapture from PETA

Taipei, Sept. 26 (CNA) Agriculture Minister Chen Bao-ji (陳保基) said Saturday that gambling on pigeon races is illegal in Taiwan after the animal rights group PETA Asia (亞洲善待動物組織) filed complaints about the maltreatment of the birds on the island.

Earlier this year, US-based People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) submitted a report based on its investigation into pigeon races in Taiwan to the country's authorities. The results showed that pigeon racing caused the death of 1.5 million birds a year in Taiwan.

The organization said that illegal betting occurred on a recent series of pigeon races held by the Kaohsiung Zhong Zheng pigeon-racing club (高雄中正賽鴿聯合會) which started in June a 7-round pigeon race with some 6,500 birds but only 36 returned by the fifth race on July 5.

Following PETA's accusation, Taiwan's authorities cracked down on a number of pigeon clubs on the island, seizing around NT$120 million (US$3.62 million) in assets and confiscating computers and other equipment.

(By Yang Shu-min and Lee Mei-yu)
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