The US has thrown cold water on Taiwan's chances of taking part in the World Health Organization any time soon, citing China's repeated success in blocking efforts to secure observer status for Taiwan at the organization's annual meetings.
"Taiwan ... does not have sufficient support among WHO member states for its observer bid," the State Department said in a report to the US Congress. The report was mandated by a law passed by Congress last month that urged the Bush administration to devise a way to secure observer status for Taiwan at next month's World Health Assembly, the annual meeting of the WHO.
To the dismay of Taiwan's supporters in Washington, the report contained no plan for securing observer status and no specific commitment to try to secure such status.
Taiwan has been hoping that Washington would spearhead an international effort to secure its observer status at the Assembly meeting in Geneva, Switzerland and to secure Taiwan's longer-term participation in the WHO's work.
Membership in the WHO is reserved for independent states, although organizations such as the Palestinian Liberation Organization and the Knights of Malta have observer status.
Washington has supported Tai-wan's efforts in the past to gain participation and the Bush administration has reiterated that support. However, US officials have been lukewarm recently about their commitment to push for observer status this year.
The report to Congress, which was dated Monday but was leaked to reporters on Wednesday, confirmed the State Department's unenthusiastic stance.
"The process leading to Taiwan observership will be a difficult one," the report said.
It said the 1997 vote by the WHO's Executive Board against putting Taiwan's request for participation on the agenda of that year's WHA meeting was the "clearest demonstration" of the lack of support for Taiwan in the organization.
The vote was 128 against Tai-wan, 19 in favor and five abstentions. That was the first year Taiwan sought observer status in the global public health body.
The State Department report also cited the WHO's Executive Board vote this past January to reject a request to place Taiwan on this year's WHA agenda. The January vote was 20 against, three in favor and eight abstentions.
More than 90 WHO members would have to approve any request to place Taiwan's participation on the agenda, the report noted. If Taiwan's request for observer status was placed on the agenda, a majority vote would be needed for the motion to pass.
Taiwan supporters and lobbyists expressed dismay over the report. "This is hardly a plan," said Wu Ming-chi (吳明基), president of the Formosan Association for Public Affairs, the main lobbying organization for Taiwan in Washington.
"Congress expected a robust, detailed description of how the State Department would proceed from now through the May 2002 Geneva meeting to get Taiwan observer status in the WHO," Wu said. "All the State Department gave was a report on why the process will be, in their words, `a difficult one.'"
"The State Department should put together a game plan as to how [US support] would be done, not give excuses as to why it will be hard to do," Wu said.
The State Department noted that "several" WHO member states are expected to request the 2002 WHA to consider Taiwan's observer status.
"Our consistent policy has been to work with Taiwan, China, WHO officials and key interested parties to ensure a smooth process and a fair hearing for Taiwan's bid," the report said.
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