BANGKOK -Each year Yala province holds the ASEAN Ground Barred Dove Festival as its major cultural event, which attracts a great number of visitors, not only from various parts of Thailand but also from other ASEAN countries.
Organized jointly by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), the Southern Border Provinces Administrative Center, the Yala City Municipality, and the Yala Provincial Administrative Organization, the festival is listed as an event on the TAT calendar that is publicized worldwide.
Also referred to as Zebra doves, or Javanese doves, barred ground doves are raised as popular pets in southern Thailand and other ASEAN countries, especially Indonesia and Malaysia. In Thailand, many people believe that having this kind of bird in their home will bring the family good luck. Known for their pleasant cooing calls, the doves are taken to competition fields and have become a part of economic activity in the region.
The ASEAN Barred Ground Dove Festival this year is the 31st of its kind and was held on 5th-6th March 2016 at Khwan Mueang Park in the town of Yala. It saw the participation of about 2,000 doves and their owners. Apart from the dove competition, there were cultural activities and a food fair, with delicious food from the southern border provinces offered to visitors.
At this event, participating doves compete to make the sweetest and most melodious cooing sounds. For a dove to be awarded a prize, its cooing must be resonant and rhythmic, and it must be able to sing for a relatively long time.
Mayor of the Yala City Municipality Pongsak Yingchoncharoen said today that the festival helps stimulate the local economy, promote tourism, and generate income from the dove business, which also involves dove farming and regional culture.
He described dove farming as a lucrative business, which generates supplementary occupations, such as those concerned with the making of birdcages, the production of bird feed and bird medicine, and other related necessities, as well as the planting of Saba bananas which are popular as a food for the doves. At one time a bunch of Saba bananas was priced at 15-20 baht. The price has now increased to 40-50 baht.
Local residents have also exported doves to various countries, such as Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore.
Mr. Pongsak said that in terms of tourism, the hotel business, transport services, restaurants, the sale of souvenirs and other local products, all have benefited from the annual ASEAN Barred Ground Dove Festival. At least 100 million baht is thought to have been in circulation during the festival, which will contribute to the economy of the far South.
It is believed that the cultural event also helps promote peace in the southern border provinces. The festival helps boost people-to-people contact and bring ASEAN people closer together. It also opens cultural space, which will lead to better understanding among the people of different faiths who share a mutual interest in raising doves.
Not only residents of Yala, but many people in other southern border provinces – Pattani, Narathiwat, Satun, and Songkhla –share a commitment to raising barred ground doves.
