WHA admission to be raised with China

Former Vice President Lien Chan made the remark at a news conference ahead of his departure for the 16th Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) economic leadership summit scheduled for Nov. 22-23 in Lima, Peru.

“I will mention the issue of Taiwan’s efforts (to obtain observer status) in the World Health Assembly (WHA)” — the decision making body of the World Health Organization — when meeting the Chinese delegation and Chinese President Hu Jintao, Lien said.

“If there is an area in the Asia Pacific region that cannot work together with others to battle against natural disasters like the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), people will not feel that this is a safe and harmonious region,” he added.

Regarding his meeting with the Chinese president, Lien insisted that their interaction will be “very natural” and will focus on economic and trade issues, as “time is precious.”

“It is not that we cannot touch on other issues, but we attach greater importance to exchanging views on economic and trade issues, as they are the focus of APEC summit,” he pointed out.

The former vice president stressed that he and Hu will address each other as “chairman” and “general secretary of the Communist Party of China,” respectively, “or we can call each other ‘leader’ and ‘leader’s envoy.’”

Asked whether he will have bilateral meetings with other heads of state at the summit, however, he noted that his itinerary is still being arranged.

Lien will represent President Ma Ying-jeou at the international conference; he will be the highest-ranking former Republic of China official ever to attend such summit.

Since taking office in May, Ma has pledged to negotiate with China on opportunities for the island to participate in major international organizations such as the WHA and the promotion of a Free Trade Area of the Asia Pacific (FTAAP), among other sensitive political issues.

Ma has tried to turn the corner on his predecessor’s strident Taiwan-centric policy and smooth over perennial tensions across the Taiwan Strait, expanding trade ties, investment and direct transportation links between the two sides.

“This is a full-scale plan and if it goes smoothly, I believe Taiwan, as a member of the (APEC) organization, can engage in bilateral negotiation processes (when discussing FTAs with other countries),” he continued.

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