CHENGDU: The pair of pandas to be sent to Taiwan has been chosen, and the two might be revealed this Friday at the China Giant Panda Research Centre in Wolong in Southwest China's Sichuan Province.

An anonymous source at the centre said it has chosen 11 giant pandas, of which two will be sent to Taiwan as a goodwill gift.

The pandas six males and five females, all aged between one and five were selected from 23 in the centre.

After two months of match-up experiments, the 11 candidates have been chosen. They are healthy, lively and adaptable to new environments, the source said.

The DNA paternity testing for candidate pandas, the most important test, has been conducted by the centre and the Chinese Academy of Sciences to avoid inbreeding between the pair, said Zhang Hemin, chief of the Wolong Nature Reserve Administrative Bureau.

The pair meet all the standards required for a goodwill mission to Taiwan, said Zhang, head of a nine-member selection panel.

The standards focus on the age, body conditions, mental activity, and external and genetic characteristics of each panda.

The State Administration of Forestry and the Taiwan Affairs Office under the State Council will hold a news conference to announce the selection results, Zhang said.

The date of the conference, which was set for December 28, was postponed because of the New Year holiday, he added.

Beijing announced plans to send giant pandas to Taiwan after a visit to the mainland by island's opposition Kuomintang Party former Chairman Lien Chan in May last year.

An opinion poll in Taiwan showed that more than 70 per cent of people on the island welcomed the decision, said Dai Xiaofeng, a senior official at the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office.

(China Daily 01/03/2006 page2)