Participation in WHA rests with China: FM

According to Ou, consultations and negotiations between the two sides of the Taiwan Strait are crucial to Taiwan's bid to join the WHA Annual General Assembly as an observer in Geneva May 18.

The Taiwan government's policy on the issue should be realistic and feasible, said Ou. Low keyed negotiations with China, rather than open confrontations in the international arena, would best serve Taiwan's interest, he suggested.

“Time is limited, therefore, the two sides must reach consensus on the issue before Taiwan can gain any ground in its attempt to join the WHA as an observer,” he said.

The recent thaw in relations across the Taiwan Strait should help, he added.

If the negotiations on related issues between the two sides of the strait produce an acceptable result, Taiwan will no longer need to seek the support of its diplomatic allies to back its efforts to participate in the WHA, he added.

At the 2008 Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum leaders summit last November, Chinese President Hu Jintao told Taiwan's presidential envoy that Taiwan's participation in the WHA and other international organizations is negotiable and may be resolved through cross strait dialogue.

In January, the WTO acceded to Taiwan's petition to be included in the International Health Regulations (IHR), a legal WHO framework for global infectious disease control.

As part of the IHR mechanism, Taiwan's Centers for Disease Control can now make direct contact with the WHO and obtain first-hand information about avian flu prevention and control, food security, and the spread and control of infectious diseases.

Meanwhile, Professor Chang Wu-yue of the University of Tamkang's Institute of Mainland China Studies said the next four months of cross-strait negotiations will be crucial to Taiwan's participation in the WHA.

“All branches of government should coordinate and make the best use of our bargaining chips on the negotiating table to fight for Taiwan's right to join international organizations such as the WHO,” said Chang.

Taiwan should take advantage of the current improvement in cross-strait relations to gain ground in the international arena, he stressed.

Due to Beijing's obstruction, Taiwan has been barred from taking part in international organizations or activities that require statehood, including the United Nations and the U.N.-affiliated WHO and its highest decision-making body, the WHA.

President Ma Ying-jeou reiterated last November in an interview with the Taipei-based China Television Co. that securing observer status for Taiwan in the WHA was his administration's top diplomatic priority. The WHA's annual meetings bring together delegations from the WHO's 192 member states.

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