Lawmakers across party lines yesterday passed several extemporaneous motions to express their opinions on the attachment of the “one China” principle to Taiwan’s invitation to this year’s World Health Assembly (WHA), which has been interpreted as yet another of Beijing’s attempts to browbeat the incoming Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) government.
Amid snowballing controversy over the WHO’s unprecedented mention of the “one China” principle in Taiwan’s WHA invitation, the legislature’s Foreign Affairs and National Defense Committee yesterday invited officials from several government agencies to answer questions regarding China’s recent spate of moves to foil Taiwan in the international arena.
During the meeting, a total of three extemporaneous motions were passed, including one by pan-green lawmakers and two by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).
Photo: Huang Yao-cheng, Taipei Times
Proposed and signed by a number of lawmakers, including DPP Legislator Lo Chih-cheng (羅致政) and New Power Party Lawmaker Freddy Lim (林昶佐), the pan-green camp’s motion stated that UN Resolution 2758, which is also mentioned in the invitation, does not pertain to the representatives of the Taiwanese government and its people to the UN and all related organizations.
“We oppose any nation intervening with or discriminating against Taiwan’s participation in the WHA through political measures or based on political reasons,” the motion said, expressing gratitude to nations that have supported Taiwan’s participation at the annual assembly.
Adopted in 1971, UN Resolution 2758 recognized the People’s Republic of China as the only lawful representatives of China to the UN and expelled “the representatives of Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) from the place which they unlawfully occupy at the UN and in all the organizations related to it.”
The second motion, proposed by KMT Legislator Johnny Chiang (江啟臣), said that the government has never recognized Beijing’s so-called “one China” principle because the government interprets “China” as the Republic of China.
“Beijing should face the facts that both sides of the Taiwan Strait have been governed by separate administrations,” Chiang’s motion reads, adding it is “unwise” for China to set preconditions for Taiwan’s participation in the WHO.
Another impromptu motion submitted by KMT Legislator Lu Yu-ling (呂玉玲) was also passed, which said the WHA’s invitation is an attempt to belittle Taipei.
It also urged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) and the Ministry of Health and Welfare to consult with the incoming DPP administration to draw up a letter to the WHO refuting the inclusion of UN Resolution 2758 in the invitation and reiterating Taiwan’s status as an independent nation.
When fielding questions from lawmakers at the meeting, MOFA Deputy Minister Javier Hou (侯清山) said it is reasonable to assume that the “one China” proviso is part of Beijing’s attempts to put pressure on president-elect Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文).
“Such a move is abrupt and unreasonable. In the past, [the WHO] simply invited us to participate at the annual assembly in a professional and dignified manner,” Hou said.
Prior to the meeting, Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Minister Shih Hui-fen (施惠芬) said Mainland Affairs Council Minister Andrew Hsia (夏立言) had expressed to his Chinese counterpart, Taiwan Affairs Office Minister Zhang Zhijun (張志軍), via the cross-strait hotline last month, the government’s aspiration to continue to participate in the WHA as an observer.
While the “one China” principle was discussed during the telephone call, Hsia and Zhang did not talk about the content and wording of the invitation, Shih said.
Separately yesterday, American Institute in Taiwan spokeswoman Sonia Urbom said the US has long supported meaningful participation for Taiwan in international organizations, where appropriate.
TWO CASES: The five allegedly conspired with conglomerates, threatening the nation’s governance and subverting the rules of ethical conduct, a deputy chief prosecutor said Taipei prosecutors yesterday charged three legislators and one former lawmaker with contravening the Anti-Corruption Act (貪污治罪條例) in a case linked to former Pacific Distribution Investment Co (太平洋流通) chairman Lee Heng-lung’s (李恆隆) battle with the Far Eastern Group (遠東集團) over ownership of the Pacific SOGO Department Store (太平洋崇光百貨) chain, while independent Legislator Chao Cheng-yu (趙正宇) was indicted in a separate case involving two funeral services companies and a plot of land in a national park. Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators Chen Chao-ming (陳超明) and Sufin Siluko (廖國棟), Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Su Chen-ching (蘇震清) and former New Power Party legislator
PENGHU INSPECTION: Taiwan cannot let its enemies strut around in its airspace, Tsai said, one day after a Chinese spokesman denied a median line exists in the Taiwan Strait Following China’s assertion on Monday that there is no “median line” in the Taiwan Strait, President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday pledged to defend the nation’s airspace during a visit to an air force base in Penghu, saying that Taiwan cannot allow others to flex their military muscle in its territorial airspace. Tsai praised the “heroic performance” of the pilots of the Indigenous Defense Fighters who have been intercepting Chinese People’s Liberation Army Air Force planes in recent days. “I have a lot of confidence in you. As soldiers of the Republic of China [ROC], how could we let enemies strut
Swedish Member of Parliament Hampus Hagman is pushing for changing the name of the nation’s trade office in Taipei to signal improved relations with “Asia’s perhaps foremost democracy.” Hagman on Wednesday last week proposed renaming the Swedish Trade and Invest Council to “Sweden’s Office in Taipei,” following similar changes by other nations. The Swedish Trade and Invest Council, part of Business Sweden, is owned by the Swedish government and Swedish industry. Taiwan and Sweden share important values such as respect for democracy, human rights, the rule of law and freedom of speech, Hagman said in the motion, adding that the two nations
EFFICIENCY: The rules for Philippine arrivals were revised after 17.6% of arrivals with symptoms tested positive, compared with 0.7% of those with no symptoms Starting today, Chinese spouses who hold a reunion permit can apply to enter Taiwan and travelers without symptoms from the Philippines do not need to be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival, but are to be tested after a 14-day quarantine, the Central Epidemic Command Center (CECC) said yesterday. Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中), who heads the center, said that from today, Chinese who are married to a Taiwanese citizen and hold a reunion permit can apply to the National Immigration Agency for entry into Taiwan. Chinese who are married to a foreign national and hold an accompanied reunion permit
RSS