As part of China's National Day today the government got friendly with 10,000 pigeons.
They were checking the anuses of chickens for suspicious objects, as the government feared protesters would smuggle dangerous items such as explosives. During the checks, members also looked under the bird's wings, tails and legs.
The pigeons came from four local pigeon associations, CNBC translates from a report that originated in the government-backed Beijing Times.
On National Day in China it's tradition to release pigeons into the air. In China pigeons represent peace.
"I have not heard of pigeons released at National Day requiring security checks, but it is possible for them to carry things such as explosives," said Mr. Yang of China Pigeon Net, a website for pigeon-fanciers, tells New York Times. "They could carry something on their legs, under a wing, or in their anus."
The Associated Press reported that many of the Chinese spoke sarcastically about the pigeon security checks since the Chinese government are known for its tight surveillance, censorship and judicial injustice.
Last year before National Day 60,000 pigeons were injected with a vaccine as a precaution against the H7N9 bird flu virus.
