Taiwan could play an important role in global efforts to prevent the spread of communicable diseases, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said on Sunday at a reception in Geneva, Switzerland, held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The spread of communicable diseases knows no borders, Chen said, adding that as a hub in Asia that receives many international travelers, Taiwan, which has cultivated advanced medical services and technologies, plays an important role in preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
A delegation led by Chen arrived in the city on Saturday and is to hold a series of events on the sidelines of the 71st annual meeting of the World Health Assembly (WHA), which Taiwan has for the second consecutive year not been invited to attend as an observer due to opposition from China.
Photo: Lu Yi-hsuan, Taipei Times
At the reception, which was attended by representatives of Taiwan’s 19 allies, Chen said that the WHO’s exclusion of Taiwan from the WHA meeting is unfair to Taiwan and violates the organization’s platform, which designates healthcare as a universal value.
Taiwan’s participation in the WHA has nothing to do with politics and everything to do with basic human rights, Chen said.
Echoing Chen, Marshallese Minister of Health Kalani Kaneko said Taiwan not only needs the WHO, but the WHO needs Taiwan.
He cited the theme of this year’s WHA: “Health for All, All for Health.”
The Marshall Islands is one of Taiwan’s diplomatic allies.
The leaders of all countries in the world should promote healthcare as a universal value to everybody on the planet to realize the message of the WHA meeting, Kaneko said.
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