Two Taiwanese experts invited by the World Health Organization (WHO) to join the global SARS conference in Malaysia will not attend the event because of WHO travel regulations, the Department of Health (DOH) said yesterday.
Su Ih-jen (蘇益仁), director of Center for Disease Control (CDC), said Chang Shang-chwen (張上淳) and Chen Pei-jer (陳培哲), two doctors from National Taiwan University Hospital, cannot join the conference because they have been in contact with SARS patients.
According to the health advisory of the WHO SARS conference, participants arriving from areas with recent local transmission can only attend the event under certain conditions.
"A person who has (1.) in the last 10 days been in close contact with a SARS case or (2.) has worked in or visited hospitals handling SARS cases should not travel within or outside the country of exposure," the health advisory said.
The advisory adds that participants having the above conditions are allowed to travel within or outside the country after a 10-day period without exposure to SARS patients or hospitals handling SARS cases has passed.
"It was already too late for Chang and Chen to isolate themselves after the WHO's invitation cards, which were sent by a third agency, arrived in Taiwan. The arrival date of the cards was only five or six days away from the conference time," Su said.
Su, who did not clarify whether the "third agency" referred to China, said the lack of a "formal and transparent" communication channel between the WHO and Taiwan has caused problems for the Taiwanese experts who have been invited to attend the SARS conference.
The WHO invited five Taiwanese experts to attend the SARS conference due to be held in Malaysia's Sunway Lagoon Resort Hotel, close to the nation's capital Kuala Lumpur, on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The other three experts who were invited were Su, Academia Sinica researcher Ho Mei-shang (
Taiwan's delegation to the conference, consisting of more than 10 health officials and headed by Su, will depart for Malaysia this morning.
"This is the first time the WHO has invited Taiwan to attend its international conference and present papers," Su said.
In a press conference held in the DOH yesterday afternoon, Cabinet Secretary-General Liu Shih-fang (劉世芳) introduced members of the delegation and their mission.
Kao, the fifth Taiwanese expert invited by the WHO to attend the conference, however, was absent from the delegation. His name was bypassed during the introduction of the delegation members.
"All delegation members here represent our government ? Kao was not an official delegate appointed by our government," Liu said.
Liu also noted the government is well prepared to respond to any move China may try to make to affect Taiwan's national status in the conference.
"The WHO should treat China and Taiwan equally," Liu said.
Meanwhile, Su said Taiwan will try to present a report in a conference entitled "National Response," which five countries and one region will attend.
Even if Taiwan fails to present the report, the delegation has prepared reports based on Taiwan's containment of SARS to distribute to participants at the conference, Su said.
RETHINK? The defense ministry and Navy Command Headquarters could take over the indigenous submarine project and change its production timeline, a source said Admiral Huang Shu-kuang’s (黃曙光) resignation as head of the Indigenous Submarine Program and as a member of the National Security Council could affect the production of submarines, a source said yesterday. Huang in a statement last night said he had decided to resign due to national security concerns while expressing the hope that it would put a stop to political wrangling that only undermines the advancement of the nation’s defense capabilities. Taiwan People’s Party Legislator Vivian Huang (黃珊珊) yesterday said that the admiral, her older brother, felt it was time for him to step down and that he had completed what he
Taiwan has experienced its most significant improvement in the QS World University Rankings by Subject, data provided on Sunday by international higher education analyst Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) showed. Compared with last year’s edition of the rankings, which measure academic excellence and influence, Taiwanese universities made great improvements in the H Index metric, which evaluates research productivity and its impact, with a notable 30 percent increase overall, QS said. Taiwanese universities also made notable progress in the Citations per Paper metric, which measures the impact of research, achieving a 13 percent increase. Taiwanese universities gained 10 percent in Academic Reputation, but declined 18 percent
CHINA REACTS: The patrol and reconnaissance plane ‘transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,’ the 7th Fleet said, while Taipei said it saw nothing unusual The US 7th Fleet yesterday said that a US Navy P-8A Poseidon flew through the Taiwan Strait, a day after US and Chinese defense heads held their first talks since November 2022 in an effort to reduce regional tensions. The patrol and reconnaissance plane “transited the Taiwan Strait in international airspace,” the 7th Fleet said in a news release. “By operating within the Taiwan Strait in accordance with international law, the United States upholds the navigational rights and freedoms of all nations.” In a separate statement, the Ministry of National Defense said that it monitored nearby waters and airspace as the aircraft
UNDER DISCUSSION: The combatant command would integrate fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups to defend waters closest to the coastline, a source said The military could establish a new combatant command as early as 2026, which would be tasked with defending Taiwan’s territorial waters 24 nautical miles (44.4km) from the nation’s coastline, a source familiar with the matter said yesterday. The new command, which would fall under the Naval Command Headquarters, would be led by a vice admiral and integrate existing fast attack boat and anti-ship missile groups, along with the Naval Maritime Surveillance and Reconnaissance Command, said the source, who asked to remain anonymous. It could be launched by 2026, but details are being discussed and no final timetable has been announced, the source