On 7 July 2025, Her Excellency Kanchana Patarachoke, Ambassador of Thailand to Belgium, and her spouse, along with the Embassy’s diplomats attended the ceremony to present the Thai costume “Spot the Rabbit, pick the flower” to the Manneken Pis, an initiative of the Office of Commercial Affairs in Brussels and the Department of Intellectual Property, the Ministry of Commerce of Thailand, in collaboration with the City of Brussels and the Association of Friends of Manneken Pis.
The “Spot the Rabbit, pick the flower” costume is designed and tailored by Mr. Shon Puipia, a Thai designer and a graduate from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp. Mr. Puipia creatively weaved themes of gender fluidity and social inclusivity of the Thai culture into his contemporary design. The costume is made from Lampoon brocade silk and Mae Jam Jok cotton fabric, both possessing Geographical Indications (GIs), showcasing Thailand’s local heritages with a modern twist.
During the ceremony, Ms. Delphine Houba, Alderwoman of Housing, Equal Opportunities, Tourism and major events, expressed appreciation and commended this initiative by Thailand to dress the Manneken Pis in a way that embraces cultural diversity and openness. Just recently, Thailand’s Marriage Equality Bill came into effect on 23 January this year, making Thailand the first country in Southeast Asia to do so.
In her remarks, Her Excellency the Ambassador highlighted the Thailand-Belgium relations, deeply rooted since the day the Treaty of Amity and Commerce was signed in 1868. The close and cordial ties between the two Royal Families, dated back since King Rama V’s state visit to Belgium in 1897 and 1907, laid strong a foundation for enhanced cooperation in various aspects. The costume is considered a gift from the people of Thailand as well as the Thai communities in Belgium, reaffirming the strong people-to-people contact which remains a solid foundation for our bilateral relations. The peoples of the two countries are becoming ever closer, with one of the factors being the resumption of Thai Airways’ Brussels-Bangkok daily direct flights since December 2024.
          Ms. Nusara Kanjanakul, Director General of the Department of Intellectual Property, Ministry of Commerce of Thailand, underlined the concept behind the design of the costume, which is adaptability and gender equality. The outfit, made of Thai local fabrics with Geographical Indications (GIs), also serves to promote Thai GIs products, which in turn helps contribute to the preservation of local heritage and improving the quality of life and livelihoods of local producers of those products.
Mr. Marc Guebel, President of the Association of Friends of Manneken Pis, expressed his delight to receive a gift from Thailand for the statue.
          During the procession from Hôtel de Ville to the Manneken Pis statue, the Harmonie Royale des Finances played the National Anthem of Thailand, the National Anthem of Belgium and Maharoek, a Thai composition to mark this auspicious occasion.
The “Spot the Rabbit, pick the flower” is the second costume from Thailand presented to the Manneken Pis. The first costume was gifted in 1995, featuring a uniform of Thai civil servants (Raja Pattern). The costume will be kept in the collection of Garderobe Manneken Pis museum.