China's `panda ploy' irritates officials

"There is no differentiation of blue and green for a panda -- they are black and white," Lien added.

KMT Chairman Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) seconded Lien's remarks.

"Please do not paint pandas with political colors. It is important to make Taiwanese feel the friendship of China," Ma said yesterday during a press conference.

Ma, in his capacity as Taipei mayor, said that the Taipei City Zoo is working on a "Panda Center," which would be ready to accept the pandas in June.

But the government was adamant on its position that China must wait until Taiwan has decided whether it will take the bears.

"China has been insensitive and indifferent toward Taiwan by deciding unilaterally to send the two pandas while Taiwan is still discussing the matter," he said.

Noting that the MAC is not the supervising agency regarding the "panda problem," Wu said that the Council of Agriculture (COA) would make the final decision on whether, and when, Taiwan should accept the two pandas.

COA officials said on Thursday that the council will decide by March 23 whether to accept the two pandas.

Acknowledging the government's cool response, Ma said the city government can only follow the application procedure and wait for the government to decide whether it will accept the gift.

But officials at the Taipei City Zoo were optimistic.

Taipei Zoo President Chen Bao-chong (陳寶忠) said his zoo would strive for the chance to be the new home for the two animals by thoroughly preparing.

"Our report shows that 11 out of the 18 pandas who live outside China had successfully reproduced since 2000, and this proves that reproductive technology has seen great progress," he said.

The zoo filed its panda import application with the COA in October, and a review panel will make a decision on whether the city zoo should be the pandas' home.

Wu said, however, that several matters must be weighed before the pandas could be introduced into Taiwan. These include whether the applicants to host the bears are qualified to apply; whether the would-be host has adequate resources and facilities; whether the import of the pandas complies with current stipulations of international wildlife conservation organizations; and whether independent international wildlife conservation organizations found Taiwan suitable to host pandas, an endangered species.

Under the multilateral Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, pandas can only be lent by China to other countries, and all the net profits from the exhibition of giant pandas should be used for the conservation of the species in China. The conservation fee every country has to pay China is up to US$1 million a year.