Every morning at 7:30 a.m. sharp, a race begins on the outskirts of Chengdu, a sprawling Chinese metropolis known for its spicy hotpot, old tea houses and the country\u2019s most beloved animal \u2013 giant pandas. <\/p>\n
From the gates of the famed Chengdu Panda Base, fans run to the leafy \u201cvilla\u201d of its celebrity resident: Hua Hua, China\u2019s most popular panda. Among them is A\u2019Qiu, who rents an apartment nearby and shares his bedroom with dozens of stuffed black and white teddy bears. <\/p>\n
The 32-year-old bikes to the panda base every morning to see Hua Hua and film the celebrity bear for his 10,000 followers on Douyin, TikTok\u2019s sister app. In the summer, he gets up as early as 3 a.m. to be at the front of the line. \u201cJust seeing her face makes me feel incredibly happy,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n
Rare, fluffy and irresistibly cute, pandas are adored across the globe. Yet Hua Hua\u2019s star power is something else entirely. The 4-year-old is so popular that only 30 people are allowed to admire her for a mere three minutes each before being ushered out by security guards. On a busy weekend or holiday, tens of thousands of visitors from across China spend more than two hours in line just to catch a glimpse of her. <\/p>\n
In Chengdu, Hua Hua\u2019s face is everywhere \u2013 in souvenir shops, cafes, post offices and on billboards. She also enjoys a massive following on Chinese social media, where her videos have racked up billions of views. <\/p>\n
Hua Hua\u2019s unprecedented popularity epitomizes a new wave of \u201cpandamonium\u201d that is sweeping across China, following a decades-long government effort to transform the giant panda from a little-known animal into a cultural icon, a national symbol and a potent tool of diplomacy. <\/p>\n
But the success of the pandas\u2019 rebranding has created an unexpected challenge for Beijing, as it seeks to balance its use of the animals for much-needed soft power abroad against the demands of an adoring public to protect their \u201cnational treasure\u201d at all costs. <\/p>\n
While many Chinese are proud to share pandas with the world, some \u2013 including a vocal fringe group of online influencers \u2013 oppose sending their beloved bears to the United States and other \u201cunfriendly\u201d countries, ostensibly for fear they\u2019ll be mistreated. <\/p>\n
The group\u2019s howls of protest could be heard last year outside the Dujiangyan Panda Base, the temporary home of two pandas that were sent to the US in a carefully orchestrated process cloaked in secrecy to avoid unscripted attention. <\/p>\n
Some animal rights activists and panda fans have also targeted researchers and scientists involved in China\u2019s panda breeding program, prompting the government to signal it will no longer tolerate any attempt to tarnish the conservation success story of the country\u2019s cuddly soft power asset. <\/p>\n