Caribbean allies Belize and Haiti have spoken up in favor of Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Assembly. That came Tuesday, during the second day of a special World Health Assembly meeting. The previous day, Nauru, one of Taiwan’s Pacific allies, had also voiced support for Taiwan to take part in the World Health Assembly.
The World Health Assembly is the WHO’s decision-making body. Taiwan previously took part in its meetings as an observer, but China has effectively blocked Taiwan from being invited back since 2016.
Belize’s health minister, Michel Chebat, told the assembly meeting that Taiwan’s exclusion from the World Health Assembly due to political factors damages the world’s ability to work together to fight disease. Chebat said that Taiwan plays a key role in the world’s early-warning system for pandemics.
Chebat also said that Taiwan has proven itself an indispensable player in the global disease prevention network, and that excluding Taiwan is not helpful to fighting disease, since viruses know no borders.
Meanwhile, Haiti’s health minister, Alex Larsen, also expressed regret at Taiwan’s exclusion from the World Health Assembly. Laresn said that the COVID-19 pandemic shows that no one can live without worry unless all people are safe.