Reacting to the government's reluctance to accept China's offer of two pandas, the Taipei City Zoo and its advocates yesterday urged the government not to play "hide-and-seek" with the pandas or ignore the wishes of Taipei residents to receive them.
They said that if the government insisted on politicizing the panda offer and meddling in the issue, they will invite Taipei residents to sign a petition asking the government to listen to the people's voice.
"The Council of Agriculture promised to make a final decision by seeking professional opinions, and we expect them to keep their promise," said the Taipei City council deputy speaker Lee Hsin (李新) of the People First Party (PFP) at a press conference.
The council said that it would seek the opinion of conservationists and other experts, and would not be influenced by political considerations during their decision-making process. The final decision on whether to approve the pandas' entry will be announced by March 23.
Premier Frank Hsieh (謝長廷) previously said that for pandas to enter the country, China would have to abide by the rules of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and allow Taiwan to sign an agreement as an "importing country" -- something he said was a practical impossibility.
Taipei Zoo President Chen Bao-chong (
"All the facilities in our panda house were specially designed for pandas. We also sent our staff to learn how to take care of pandas at zoos in Beijing, Japan and the US," he added.
The zoo filed its panda import application with the council in October, and a review panel will make a decision on whether it should be the pandas' home.
The city's Teachers Association, the city government's "panda team" and three children who won a panda-drawing contest held by the city zoo also issued their support for the city's bid to house the panda pair.
ANOTHER EMERGES: The CWA yesterday said this year’s fourth storm of the typhoon season had formed in the South China Sea, but was not expected to affect Taiwan Tropical Storm Gaemi has intensified slightly as it heads toward Taiwan, where it is expected to affect the country in the coming days, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said yesterday. As of 8am yesterday, the 120km-radius storm was 800km southeast of Oluanpi (鵝鑾鼻), Taiwan’s southernmost tip, moving at 9kph northwest, the agency said. A sea warning for Gaemi could be issued tonight at the earliest, it said, adding that the storm is projected to be closest to Taiwan on Wednesday or Thursday. Gaemi’s potential effect on Taiwan remains unclear, as that would depend on its direction, radius and intensity, forecasters said. Former Weather Forecast
As COVID-19 cases in Japan have been increasing for 10 consecutive weeks, people should get vaccinated before visiting the nation, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) said. The centers reported 773 hospitalizations and 124 deaths related to COVID-19 in Taiwan last week. CDC Epidemic Intelligence Center Director Guo Hung-wei (郭宏偉) on Tuesday said the number of weekly COVID-19 cases reported in Japan has been increasing since mid-May and surpassed 55,000 cases from July 8 to July 14. The average number of COVID-19 patients at Japan’s healthcare facilities that week was also 1.39 times that of the week before and KP.3 is the dominant
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) working group for Taiwan-related policies is likely to be upgraded to a committee-level body, a report commissioned by the Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) said. As Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is increasingly likely to upgrade the CCP’s Central Leading Group for Taiwan Affairs, Taiwanese authorities should prepare by researching Xi and the CCP, the report said. At the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the CCP, which ended on Thursday last week, the party set a target of 2029 for the completion of some tasks, meaning that Xi is likely preparing to
US-CHINA TRADE DISPUTE: Despite Beijing’s offer of preferential treatment, the lure of China has dimmed as Taiwanese and international investors move out Japan and the US have become the favored destinations for Taiwanese graduates as China’s attraction has waned over the years, the Ministry of Labor said. According to the ministry’s latest income and employment advisory published this month, 3,215 Taiwanese university graduates from the class of 2020 went to Japan, surpassing for the first time the 2,881 graduates who went to China. A total of 2,300 graduates from the class of 2021 went to the US, compared with the 2,262 who went to China, the document showed. The trend continued for the class of 2023, of whom 1,460 went to Japan, 1,334 went to