Hong Kong launches panda sculpture tour as the city hopes the bear craze boosts tourism

HONG KONG (AP) — Thousands of giant panda sculptures will greet residents and tourists starting Saturday in Hong Kong, where enthusiasm for the bears has grown since two cubs were born in a local theme park.

The 2,500 exhibits were showcased in a launch ceremony of PANDA GO! FEST HK, the city's largest panda-themed exhibition, at Hong Kong's airport on Monday. They will be publicly displayed at the Avenue of Stars in Tsim Sha Tsui, a popular shopping district, this weekend before setting their footprint at three other locations this month.

One designated spot is Ocean Park, home to the twin cubs, their parents and two other pandas gifted by Beijing this year. The design of six of the sculptures, made of recycled rubber barrels and resins among other materials, was inspired by these bears.

The cubs — whose birth in August made their mother Ying Ying the world’s oldest first-time panda mom — may meet visitors as early as February.

In a separate media preview event on Monday, the new pair of Beijing-gifted pandas, An An and Ke Ke, who arrived in September, appeared relaxed in their new home at Ocean Park. An An enjoyed eating bamboo in front of the cameras and Ke Ke climbed on an installation. They are set to meet the public on Sunday.

The displays reflect Hong Kong’s use of pandas to boost its economy as the Chinese financial hub works to regain its position as one of Asia’s top tourism destinations.

Pandas are considered China’s unofficial national mascot. The country’s giant panda loan program with overseas zoos has long been seen as a tool of Beijing’s soft-power diplomacy.

Hong Kong's tourism industry representatives are upbeat about the potential impact of housing six pandas, hoping to boost visitor numbers even though caring for pandas in captivity is expensive. Officials have encouraged businesses to capitalize on the popularity of the bears to seize opportunities in what some lawmakers have dubbed the “panda economy."

The organizer of the exhibitions also invited some renowned figures, including musician Pharrell Williams, to create special-edition panda designs. Most of these special sculptures will be auctioned online for charity and the proceeds will be donated to Ocean Park to support giant panda conversation efforts.

Ying Ying and the twin cubs' father, Le Le, are the second pair of pandas gifted by Beijing to Hong Kong since the former British colony returned to China’s rule in 1997.

The first pair were An An and Jia Jia who arrived in 1999. Jia Jia, who died at 38 in 2016, is the world’s oldest-ever panda to have lived in captivity.

The average lifespan for a panda in the wild is 14 to 20 years, while in captivity it’s up to 30 years, according to the World Wide Fund for Nature.

A panda mascot poses for photographs in front of the panda sculptures displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during the welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

A staff member carries one of the 2500 panda sculptures displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

Part of 2500 panda sculptures are displayed at the Hong Kong International Airport during a welcome ceremony of the panda-themed exhibition "Panda Go!" in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda Ke Ke makes her debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda Ke Ke makes her debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda Ke Ke makes her debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda Ke Ke makes her debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda Ke Ke makes her debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda Ke Ke makes her debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

The Beijing-gifted giant panda An An makes his debut appearance to media in Ocean Park during a preview event in Hong Kong, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Chan Long Hei)

TBILISI, Georgia (AP) — More than 200 people have been detained after four nights of protests in the Georgian capital following the government’s decision to suspend negotiations to join the European Union after the block lambasted the country's parliamentary election.

The ruling Georgian Dream party’s disputed victory in the country’s Oct. 26 parliamentary election, widely seen as a referendum on Georgia’s aspirations to join the EU, has sparked mass demonstrations, with the opposition boycotting the parliament.

The opposition and the country's pro-Western president also accused the vote of being rigged with Moscow's help.

Tens of thousands of demonstrators gathered outside the parliament for the fourth night on Sunday. Some protesters threw fireworks at police who responded by deploying tear gas and water cannon.

Georgia’s Interior Ministry said Monday that 224 protesters were detained on administrative charges and three arrested on criminal charges. So far, 113 police officers needed medical treatment while three others were hospitalized.

Georgia's President Salome Zourabichvili said that many of the arrested protesters had injuries to their heads and faces, including broken bones and eye sockets. Writing on X and citing lawyers who represent the detained, she said some people were subject to systematic beatings between arrest and transportation to detention facilities.

Zourabichvili holds a largely ceremonial role and is due to step down at the end of the year. She has indicated she will remain in her post until another president is chosen by a “legtimate" parliament.

Ahead of Sunday's protest, Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze of Georgian Dream warned that “any violation of the law will be met with the full rigor of the law.”

“Neither will those politicians who hide in their offices and sacrifice members of their violent groups to severe punishment escape responsibility,” he said at a briefing.

He insisted it wasn’t true that Georgia’s European integration had been halted. “The only thing we have rejected is the shameful and offensive blackmail, which was, in fact, a significant obstacle to our country’s European integration.”

The government’s announcement to suspend the EU membership process came hours after the European Parliament adopted a resolution criticizing October's election in Georgia as neither free nor fair.

Kobakhidze also dismissed the U.S. State Department’s statement Saturday which announced the suspension of its strategic relationship with Georgia and condemned the decision to halt its efforts toward EU accession.

“You can see that the outgoing (U.S.) administration is trying to leave the new administration with as difficult a legacy as possible. They are doing this regarding Ukraine, and now also concerning Georgia,” Kobakhidze said. “This will not have any fundamental significance. We will wait for the new administration and discuss everything with them.”

Kobakhidze also confirmed that Georgia’s ambassador to the U.S., David Zalkaliani, had become the latest of a number of diplomats to stand down since the protests started.

The president of the European Council, Antonio Costa, and foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas spoke to President Zourabichvili Sunday to condemn the violence against protesters and to note that “the actions of the government run counter to the will of the people,” Costa wrote on X.

Also Sunday, Kallas and EU enlargement commissioner Marta Kos released a joint statement.

“We note that this announcement marks a shift from the policies of all previous Georgian governments and the European aspirations of the vast majority of the Georgian people, as enshrined in the Constitution of Georgia,” the statement said.

It reiterated the EU’s “serious concerns about the continuous democratic backsliding of the country” and urged Georgian authorities to “respect the right to freedom of assembly and freedom of expression, and refrain from using force against peaceful protesters, politicians and media representatives.”

The EU granted Georgia candidate status in December 2023 on condition that it meet the bloc’s recommendations but put its accession on hold and cut financial support earlier this year after the passage of a “foreign influence” law widely seen as a blow to democratic freedoms.

Georgian Dream has increasingly adopted repressive laws mirroring those in Russia which crack down on freedom of speech and curtail LGBTQ+ rights. A law banning same-sex marriages, adoptions by same-sex couples and public endorsement and depictions of LGBTQ+ relations and people in the media came into force Monday.

Speaking to The Associated Press on Saturday, Zourabichvili said that her country was becoming a “quasi-Russian” state and that Georgian Dream controlled the major institutions.

“We are not demanding a revolution. We are asking for new elections, but in conditions that will ensure that the will of the people will not be misrepresented or stolen again,” Zourabichvili said.

Protesters hold an EU and Georgian national flags during a rally against the governments' decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Protesters with Georgian national flags shout toward police during a rally against the governments' decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Sunday, Dec. 1, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

A police officer kicks a canister during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, early Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Demonstrators stand in front of police during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, early Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Demonstrators warm themselves next to a burning barricade during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, early Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

A demonstrator fires a firecracker towards police during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, early Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Demonstrators run away from a cloud of tear gas during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years in Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Police officers detain a demonstrator at a subway station during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years in Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

A woman helps a demonstrator up at a subway station during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years in Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Police officers detain journalist Giorgi Chamelishvili during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years, outside the parliament's building in Tbilisi, Georgia, early Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Demonstrators run away from a cloud of tear gas during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years in Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)

Police officers detain demonstrators at a subway station during a rally against the government's decision to suspend negotiations on joining the European Union for four years in Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, Dec. 2, 2024. (AP Photo/Zurab Tsertsvadze)