The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said yesterday it was regrettable that the UN had once again rejected a letter submitted by a group of Taiwan allies expressing support for Taiwan's UN bid. As a sovereign and independent country, Taiwan has every right to be part of the global body, the ministry said.
The UN Office of Legal Affairs yesterday returned a joint petition letter submitted by 12 allies of Taiwan -- St. Vincent, Palau, Gambia, Sao Tome and Principe, the Solomon Islands, Swaziland, Nauru, Tuvalu, the Marshall Islands, St Christopher, Belize, and St Lucia -- citing UN Resolution 2758 as the reason to bar Taiwan from joining the organization.
The letter, addressed to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, stated that the global body had wronged Taiwan repeatedly by using resolution 2758 to justify its denial of Taiwan's right to participate.
"It is very regrettable for the UN to continue using resolution 2758 as its basis to reject Taiwan's bid. The resolution never clearly stated the relationship between the People's Republic of China (PRC) and Taiwan. Moreover, it does not authorize Beijing to represent the people of Taiwan at the UN," ministry spokeswoman Phoebe Yeh (葉非比) said.
Central News Agency reported yesterday that although the office had refused to review the letter, it did not use its usual "Taiwan is part of the PRC" rhetoric to explain its decision.
This represented the second time that the legal affairs office turned down a petition letter submitted by allies of Taiwan.
In October, the office used the "one China" principle to blackball the Taiwan issue from being discussed in the UN General Assembly.
In September, the UN Secretariat Office also returned a letter signed by President Chen Shui-bian (
The letter was never reviewed by the secretariat office or by the executive committee and was returned unopened with its original seal.
Yeh said Taiwan was very grateful to the 12 allies for continuing to support its bids.
Taiwan has tried to regain a seat at the international body ever since it forfeited its place in 1971 when the UN allowed the PRC to become a member.
On Saturday, voters will also be asked to voice their opinion on the matter through two referendums, one proposed by the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and the other by the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP).
The DPP proposal asks voters whether they agree the country should apply to the UN under the name "Taiwan," while the KMT asks whether they agree Taiwan should seek to rejoin the UN under the formal title of Republic of China or any other "practical" titles.
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