The Taiwan Times – Editorial – Taiwan Can Help

Taiwan’s bid to become a fully fledged member of the World Health Organisation (WHO) is gaining momentum.

This is in spite of the best efforts of current WHO Director General Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus to kowtow to China as he plays his part in Beijing’s ongoing quest to keep Taiwan out of any meaningful international organisations.

Global Awareness Of Taiwan’s Position

Earlier today, Britain’s national broadcaster the BBC carried an article on the joint China-WHO efforts to block Taiwanese access to global health forums.

This came just days after an embarrassing exchange saw a senior advisor to the WHO, Canadian Bruce Aylward dodge questions posted in an interview with Hong Kong news outlet RTHK.

Aylward eventually pretended to lose his Internet signal after first feigning a hearing problem when asked about Taiwan’s membership of the WHO.

A former Japanese prime minister, and current deputy PM, Taro Aso, a staunchly pro-Taiwan politician has even gone on record as saying the WHO should be known as the ‘CHO’- the China Health Organisation.

US Senators Back Taiwan

Most importantly in recent months perhaps is the most influential figure to date to raise the issue – Republican Senator for Colorado Cory Gardner.

As Chairman of the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on East Asia, the Pacific, and International Cybersecurity Policy, Gardner sent a letter to Ghebreyesus in late January in a bid to gain observer status for the island nation at WHO meetings. 

The letter was co-signed by a host of other Republican senators including former presidential candidate Mitt Romney, Ted Cruz, and Marco Rubio.

The letter read, in part, “We write to you today to raise concerns about Taiwan’s exclusion from the World Health Organization (WHO) in light of the quickly growing outbreak of a novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV). This virus was first detected in Wuhan, China and is beginning to spread to other locations, including Taiwan and the United States,” 

Continuing, “We must ensure that this communicable and deadly virus is contained and that means working with our international partners anywhere the virus is detected, including the island of Taiwan. We look forward to working with you and other key officials as we combat this new pathogen,” the letter has so far proven unsuccessful in influencing the pro-Beijing mindset of those at the top of the Swiss based WHO. 

The full letter can be viewed here.

Taiwan Can Help

Times are changing, however.

The world is starting to notice China’s incessant bullying of Taiwan, and in a period when unprecedented global unity is crucial in flighting off a pandemic that does not discriminate based on sex, race, or nationality, the world needs Taiwan.

Taiwan can help.