Pandas may go Taiwan for show by breaking "political limits"
( 2001-12-21 15:28 ) (9 )

The Municipal Zoo of Taipei, capital of China's Taiwan Province is schedueled to exhange certain kinds of animals with zoos on the Chinese mainland. Pandas and Siberian Tigers, treated as the nation's treasure, may be sent to Taiwan for exchange.

At a seminar in Taipei on animal rearing which drew 14 zoo chiefs from Beijing, Shanghai, Harbin, Dailian and Animal Association on the mainland, the participants explored ways to break the limits of animal exchange cross the Taiwan Straits which separates the mainland and the Taiwan Province.

The Beiing-based China News Service reported on December 20 that the Taipei Municipal Zoo chief suggested that the exchange could start from commonly-seen animals to gradually include pandas after breaking "political and legal limits."

According to Taiwan-based United Daily News, the central government on the mainland has long agreed to send pandas and northeastern Chinese tigers to Taiwan, but the Taiwan authorities blocked the offer on various kinds of excuses.

(Chinadaily.com.cn News by Fang Xuan)