Taiwan calls for Indian support for its participation in WHA 2019
Once again, Taiwan has not been invited to participate in World Health Assembly (WHA) happening in Geneva on May 20 under political pressure from China, the TECC has claimed.
New Delhi. With hardly a few days left for world’s prestigious 72nd World Health Assembly (WHA) to take off, the Taipei Economic and Cultural Center in India (TECC) has called for the Indian government and concerned sectors to support Taiwan’s participation in this global event.
Taiwan was invited as an observer to the Assembly from 2009 to 2016, but not since 2017, obviously out of political pressure from China, the TECC officials have claimed.
The 72nd World Health Assembly is being organized in Geneva, Switzerland from May 20 to 28. The WHA is the decision-making body of the WHO under the United Nations (UN) system.
The TECC Representative and Taiwan Ambassador to India Chung-kwang Tien, expressed deep disappointment about WHA’s decision of not inviting Taiwan to participate in the 72nd World Health Assembly under the political blockage from the People’s Republic of China at a press conference in New Delhi, May 10.
The ambassador cited the WHO Constitution that “the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health is one of the fundamental rights of every human being without distinction of race, religion, political belief, economic or social condition.
However, the last date for applying for the WHA participation had lapsed on May 6, the ambassador told the media.
“Diseases know no border. A global seamless effort including the nation of Taiwan and its 23.5 million people is the only way to effectively prevent communicable epidemics and ensure human health around the world,” ambassador Tien said.
“On behalf of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan), TECC looks to the WHO and our friends in India to recognize the justice and importance of Taiwan’s participation in the WHA,” the ambassador added.
According to TECC, Taiwan, as a major contributor to world health, has invested over $6 billion US dollars in international medical and humanitarian aids that have helped more than 80 countries for the past 23 years. Since the foundation of the Taiwan International Healthcare Training Center in 2002, Taiwan has provided suitable training to about 1,500 health professionals from around the world.
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Taiwan not only offers international scholarships of in-service programs and higher education in the fields such as medicine, dentistry, health administration and public health for locals and foreigners but also plays an active role in countering Chikungunya, Dengue Fever, Ebola, Zika and other commonly seen infectious diseases in the Asia-Pacific region, TECC said.
Ronald Sapa Tlau, member of Rajya Sabha and Committee on Health and Family Welfare of India; Vikrant Pachnanda, lawyer and advocate of Supreme Court of India; Dr. Anamika, representatives from Taiwan Alumni Association and Taiwan Chamber of Commerce in New Delhi were also present on the occasion to share their views with Taiwan.
It was emphasized by TECC officers that the US, Canada, UK, EU countries, Australia and Japan have voiced their support to Taiwan over the past weeks. The World Medical Association via a press release made on April 30 said “the millions of Taiwanese people deserve their health interested to be represented [in the WHA]. The Reporters Without Borders circulated a statement on April 7 calling the journalists and media from Taiwan to be authorized to cover events in the 72nd WHA and other UN activities, as the current circumstances do not allow them.
A video briefly describing Taiwan’s international cooperation and development assistance in medicine and healthcare with other WHO members was screened at the event. Taiwan’s National Health Insurance system, ranking 9th in Health Care Efficiency Index by The Bloomberg in 2018 and corresponding to the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) idea was set in the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, was also introduced to the journalists.
Ronald Sapa Tlau, member of Rajya Sabha and Committee on Health and Family Welfare of India lamented that it was a sad state of affairs that the 2030 agenda of UN General Assembly resolution that none will be left behind, was not getting fulfilled.
He submitted, “WHO must assure that it will leave no stone unturned just so that every possible and available resource of all potential countries are not left behind to create a safer and healthier community of the world.”
Dr. Anamika, the representatives from Taiwan Alumni Association and Taiwan Chamber of Commerce in New Delhi who has worked extensively on the human rights education in Taiwan, said nobody has the right to violate fundamental human dignity whether it was India, China, Taiwan or America.
“And health is one of the important factors without which humans cannot enjoy healthy lives. Why Taiwan should be denied the basic right of participation in WHA for that matter,” she exclaimed.
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