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span style="font-size:14px">BEIJING (Bernama) – Almost every country has an official national animal, which symbolises a unifying image of the nation.
The national animal is selected carefully to reflect the people’s goals, values, tradition, culture and history and is very emblematic.
In Malaysia, Harimau Malaya or the Malayan Tiger is a ubiquitous national icon symbolising bravery and strength. It is deservedly honoured and depicted in the Coat of Arms of Malaysia.
While the Giant Panda, China’s national treasure reflecting harmony, friendship and peace, has become synonymous with 5,000 years of Chinese history.
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The bear is easily recognised by its large distinctive black patches around the eyes, over the ears and across its chubby body and it is a form of diplomatic outreach for China.
However, both the Malayan Tiger and the Giant Panda are critically endangered today due to deforestation on the part of humans, which has led to permanent habitat loss in some areas.
Their survival is threatened by illegal poaching, hunting and illegal trading; hence both nations are reported to have taken serious measures including efforts to conserve the endangered species, which risk extinction.
AT BEIJING ZOO
This writer, currently attending a course in Beijing since July, took the opportunity to visit the Beijing Zoo recently for a first-hand view of the Giant Panda, described as one of the most delightful and captivating of animals. Saving the Giant Panda, is one of the most important conservation priorities of China. The Giant Panda is only found in China.
While this writer has seen the Giant Panda or scientifically known as Ailuropada Melanoleu at the Giant Panda Conservation Centre (GPCC), in Kuala Lumpur last May, the excitement is still there especially at the sight of watching ‘Gu Gu’, one of the tamed pandas here, with its antics. Born on Sept 25, 1999, the male panda is now 23 years old.
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The Giant Panda is considered unique, not just for its appearance but also for its behaviour. Pandas have earned themselves so much fame over the years and their presence in zoos pulls crowds.
Another star attraction was Meng Er, a nine-year old male panda which appeared friendly and playful in front of the cameras.
“You are all very lucky as the pandas have just stepped out of their house. The pandas are rather ‘lazy’ and are usually found sleeping,” said the programme assistant, who was together with this writer during the visit, in jest.
UNIQUE DIPLOMAT
It is generally believed that the reason China uses panda diplomacy to negotiate with other countries is largely due to the appeal of these cuddly creatures. The panda represents a way to cultivate ‘soft power’.
Since 1949, Beijing has given pandas to countries such as Soviet Union, North Korea, Japan and the United States. It is China's diplomatic way of promoting friendly relations with countries abroad.
As a goodwill ambassador, its value in politics was not new. In Japanese history, Wu Zetian, Empress of the Tang Dynasty sent two bears, believed to be pandas, as a national gift to Japan.
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However, China gradually halted its goodwill gesture of giving the highly endangered pandas to foreign countries in the 1980s and gave pandas on loan for the purposes of “breeding and biological research”. Chinese President Xi Jinping gifted two giant panda cubs Yu Yi and Ding Ding to Russia in 2019, the 70th anniversary of diplomatic ties, as a “sign of special respect and trust in Russia”. The presentation of the two pandas took place after two years of negotiations.
Given its special and unique charm, the giant panda was one of the five mascots selected for the Olympics Games 2008 when China hosted the prestigious sports event.
PANDA CONSERVATION
China is committed to its panda conservation agenda, such as introducing and enforcing the ban on logging in the panda’s habitat as well as smuggling of panda in addition to investing large sums of money in reforestation incentive programmes.
To save the endangered species, nature reserves have been established in six mountain ranges of Qinling, Minshan, Qionglai, Liangshan, Da Xiangling and Xiao Xiangling since 1963.
According to China Daily, the Giant Panda National Park in the provinces of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu connects the Giant Panda habitats - which were originally 73 natural reserves - together. About 72 per cent of China’s wild giant pandas are protected under the park.
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China has also set up an agricultural farm which allows bamboo – main food source of the giant panda - to grow naturally, in order to increase the number of plants and help giant pandas return to nature.
As a result of long-term conservation efforts, including the expansion of habitats, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) had already removed the animal from its endangered species list (Red List) and re-labelled it as “vulnerable” (VU) in July 2021.
This is following the increase in the number of the animal species to over 1,800 in the wild after years of implementing biodiversity protection and ecological restoration measures.
THREE PANDAS, RARE SUCCESS
Malaysia has also contributed to the growth of the panda population in China when a pair of Chinese pandas, Fu Wa and Feng Yi, were loaned to the Malaysian government in 2014 for 10 years to mark the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China.
The loan was made under the International Giant Panda Conservation Cooperation Agreement, which allows Malaysia the opportunity to conduct research on giant panda conservation, in addition to developing and training local expertise.
The iconic Giant Panda pair has since been renamed Xing Xing and Liang Liang. To date, Liang Liang has given birth to three panda cubs, Nuan Nuan born on Aug 18, 2015, Yi Yi (Jan 14, 2018) and Sheng Yi on May 30, 2021.
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The birth of the third panda cub took many by surprise including China as it can be difficult to get pandas to breed in captivity, and three cubs within a period of seven years, is said to be a rare success.
“We didn’t expect the giant panda in Malaysia to be productive,” said a fellow journalist here.
Despite earlier controversy surrounding the RM24.9 million construction cost of the GPCC, which is sited on a 1.6 hectare site, Zoo Negara said the presence of the pandas as the latest attraction, saw a surge in visitors.
Besides the cost, Zoo Negara also incurs RM1.5 million in terms of operating and panda food expenses yearly as well US$1 million payment to the Chinese government annually.
LEARN FROM CHINA’S EXPERIENCE
Based on China’s Giant Panda conservation programmes, this writer is convinced that Malaysia will be able to take a leaf out of China’s success story by ensuring the Harimau Malaya is protected and prevented from extinction through the Save the Malayan Tiger Campaign under the Ministry of Energy and Natural Resources.
According to the official website of the campaign harimau.my, the First National Tiger Survey conducted from 2016 to 1918 revealed that there are less than 200 Malayan Tigers in 75 per cent of the surveyed plots.
Experts predict that the Malayan Tiger will vanish within five to 10 years if strategic actions are not put in place immediately.
“If no instant action is taken, Malaysia faces the risk of extinction of the Malayan Tiger, which has become the symbol in our coat of arms, emblems of the states, ministries, departments and agencies”, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.
He said this in a statement after chairing the first meeting of the National Conservation Task Force (MyTTF) early this year, which discussed strategic measures taken by the country in the conservation of the Malayan Tiger.
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According to Ismail Sabri, the meeting also agreed to proceed with the Malayan Tiger Strategic Conservation Plan (2021-2030) through six approaches, including having boots on the ground, involving the Wildlife and National Parks Department, police, army and Orang Asli community.
Other measures to be taken include the strengthening and conservation of habitats through managing sustainable land use and stopping all forms of illegal hunting and infringement activities, and increasingly expanding existing forested area on the peninsula from 43.41 per cent to 50 per cent by 2040.
The Wildlife Conservation Act 2010 was amended in Parliament on Dec 21 last year to give authorities more bite in the conservation of wildlife.
This includes increasing the maximum fine from RM500,000 to RM1 million and the prison sentence up to 15 years for wildlife criminals, while a new provision was also introduced to allow action against individuals who advertise the sale of these animals online.
(This writer is currently in Beijing as a participant of the China Asia Pacific Press Centre 2022 (CAPCC) at the invitation of the China Public Diplomacy Association. The programme from June 20, 2022 is scheduled to end middle of November.
Organised by the China International Press Communication Centre (CIPCC), this programme saw the participation of over 70 international media practitioners from various nations. Participants are given insights on socio-economic developments, diplomacy, culture, science and technology, journalism training and practical training with Chinese media as well as visits to selected regions. Participants are also given the opportunity to cover main domestic and diplomatic events in China).
Translated by Salbiah Said
