Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly (WHA) was left off the agenda after a debate at the plenary meeting on Monday.
On Tuesday, Taiwan’s foreign ministry thanked its allies for speaking up for Taiwan and called on the global health body to not leave out anyone in global pandemic prevention. The ministry said that only if Taiwan is allowed to participate in the WHA as an observer and to attend its technical meetings will the World Health Organization (WHO) be able to meet its aim of providing “health for all”.
Foreign ministry spokesperson Joanne Ou said, “Taiwan is happy to work hand in hand with other countries in overcoming the challenges presented by COVID-19. We are also willing to contribute to the global recovery from the pandemic.”
Taiwan's participation in the WHA was a topic in the plenary discussion when the 74th WHA opened virtually on Monday. Thirteen of Taiwan's 15 diplomatic allies had called on the WHO to invite Taiwan to participate in the WHA as an observer. The appeal was dealt with in two sessions.
The proposal was first raised by two diplomatic allies during the WHA General Committee meeting, but the committee didn’t include it into the agenda due to objections from China.
The second opportunity came at the plenary session with a two on two debate. Taiwan’s diplomatic allies Nauru and Eswatini spoke up for Taiwan. They said that Taiwan has made many contributions to world health and pressure from one country should not keep it from participating as this disrupts global collaboration in health. They said that Taiwan’s observer status is a health issue not a political one.
China and Pakistan expressed opposition to including the issue of Taiwan’s participation in this year's agenda. China argued that Taiwan should only be allowed to participate in any international organization under the "One China" principle.
After the debate, Bhutan's health minister Dechen Wangmo, who was elected as this year's WHA president, decided to leave the proposal off the agenda.
This year was the fifth consecutive year that Taiwan did not participate in the WHA as an observer due to opposition from China.