The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) said yesterday it is working hard to persuade the UN Office in Geneva to issue press passes to Taiwanese journalists to cover the 58th World Health Assembly (WHA), which is scheduled to take place in Geneva from May 16 to May 25.
In a statement, the ministry "strongly protested" the Geneva office's rule that only journalists holding passports from states recognized by the UN General Assembly will get media accreditation for the WHA.
Taiwan will lodge its 9th application for observer status in the WHA next Monday. The WHA meets annually and is the highest decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO).
UN officials in Geneva, however, rejected Taiwanese reporters' applications for press badges to cover the event and told them they could not get media accreditation because they are not from a state recognized by the UN General Assembly.
"It is the belief of the ministry that the UN should respect the universal value of press freedom. The UN should protect journalists' rights and should not fail to do so because of political pressure," the ministry statement said.
Criticizing China as the "mastermind" behind the UN Geneva office's refusal to accredit Taiwanese journalists, the ministry said this situation revealed that China has not been sincere when repeating its "goodwill" toward the Taiwanese people in recent days.
"It is simply pursuing a two-faced strategy on Taiwan," the ministry said.
Ministry spokesman Michel Lu (
The ministry said that since the Geneva office refused to issue press passes to Taiwanese journalists during last year's WHA, it instructed the country's representative offices in New York, where UN headquarters are located, and in Geneva to try to negotiate with UN information officials on the issue prior to this year's WHA.
"But the UN still succumbs to political pressure and sacrifices press freedom, which it has been actively advocating, in order to seek compromise in international politics.
The ministry is very disappointed and finds the matter deeply regrettable," the statement said.
MOFA stressed that the UN has no right to express its opinions on Taiwan's national status.
"Currently, there are 25 UN member states or observers that maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan. This is an undeniable fact and the UN should respect this," the ministry said.
MOFA said it is unheard of for the UN to block journalists from covering UN-related events because they hold passports issued by states that are not members of the UN.
It pointed out that Swiss reporters did not have any problems getting media accreditation covering UN events before Switzerland joined the UN as a member.
UN information officials once told Taiwanese diplomats in private that they have "other considerations" in handling media accreditation for Taiwanese journalists in the WHA, the ministry said.
"China not only oppresses press freedom in its own land but also stretches its hand into the UN, depriving Taiwanese journalists of their rights. Voices from all sides should criticize such behavior," the ministry said in the statement.
The ministry said it is soliciting support from international journalists' associations for Taiwanese reporters.
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