Two government ministers have expressed Taiwan’s deep dissatisfaction at the country’s continued exclusion from World Health Organization bodies. Foreign Minister Joseph Wu and Health Minister Chen Shih-chung’s joint statement comes as the 74th World Health Assembly begins on Monday.
This year is the fifth year in a row that Taiwan has not received an invitation to attend the World Health Assembly. The assembly is the decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO). Taiwan took part as an observer between 2009 and 2016. Since then, however, pressure from Chinese authorities has prevented Taiwan from attending.
China considers Taiwan part of its own territory, and opposes the country’s interaction with the world community. That’s despite the fact that Taiwan governs itself and provides for the health needs of its own people.
Ministers Wu and Chen say they are registering the government’s protest against what they are calling a “deeply dissatisfactory” decision by the WHO. At the same time, they say Taiwan is sincerely grateful towards the international community for its strong support of Taiwan’s bid.
Chen says that the recent outbreak of COVID-19 in Taiwan has shown yet again that national borders have no bearing on the virus's spread. He says excluding Taiwan means leaving a gap in the world’s defenses in the ongoing fight against the pandemic. That’s why Chen says the decision is Taiwan’s loss and the world’s loss, too.
Foreign Minister Joseph Wu says he regrets the WHO’s decision. He says the organization should not ignore the voice of those calling for Taiwan to contribute to promoting global public health. Wu says that the WHO is contradicting its own mantra of “leaving no one behind”.