Taiwan Medical Professionals Alliance chairman Wu Shuh-min (
Deputy Representative Stanley Kao (高碩泰) of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in Washington said he was still trying to clarify the reason for the PAHO's canceling the meeting, adding there might have been "foul play."
A PAHO spokesperson did not respond to inquiries.
Seeking support
A medical delegation consisting of Wu, Taiwan Medical Association president Wu Yun-tung (吳運東) and Taiwan Solidarity Union Legislator George Liu (劉寬平) is in Washington to drum up support for the nation's entry into the WHO.
At a press conference at Twin Oaks, Wu Shuh-min said China is oppressing Taiwan wherever it can.
Taiwan Medical Professionals Alliance executive director Lin Shih-chia (林世嘉) aimed his criticism at Hong Kong born WHO Director-General Margaret Chan (陳馮富珍), saying Chan's actions after her accession to the post last year have showed that she is focusing on China's interests rather than the interests of the WHO.
Health danger
The medical delegation said that Taiwan's isolation from the WHO presents a danger to global health, as Taiwan is the only country in the world denied full access to support and information from the world health body.
The physicians met US officials in the hope that Washington would broaden its support for the country's admission, under observer status, to the WHO.
In recent years Japan and the US have advocated for Taiwan's observer status, but only 25 of the WHO's 191 full members have joined the cause.
The physicians said they hoped to convince the US to apply more pressure on the EU and Canada to join the cause for Taiwan, but doubted they had succeeded.
Both the EU and Ottawa say they can't allow Taiwan to have observer status -- already accorded to the Red Cross, the Palestinian Authority, the Vatican, Kosovo and several other non-state entities -- because it would violate their "one China" policy.
"If we are not in the network, there is going to be a hole," said Wu Shuh-Min (
Liu took the argument one step further.
"This is not a political issue but an issue of human rights," he said.
The delegation has been visiting world capitals ahead of the annual World Health Assembly in May, where matters of membership are decided. A simple majority would suffice to give Taiwan observer status.
"We don't mind fighting another 10 years, but I don't want a disaster to happen," Wu Shuh-min said.
Taiwan successfully contained a SARS outbreak in 2003 using a rigorous system of containment, ship and plane searches, the temperature-monitoring of arriving passengers, hospital closures and facial masks distribution.
The physicians said that Beijing kept the world in the dark about its SARS problems and has "lied" to the world about how much support it gives Taiwan on health issues.
INCREASED CAPACITY: The flights on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays would leave Singapore in the morning and Taipei in the afternoon Singapore Airlines is adding four supplementary flights to Taipei per week until May to meet increased tourist and business travel demand, the carrier said on Friday. The addition would raise the number of weekly flights it operates to Taipei to 18, Singapore Airlines Taiwan general manager Timothy Ouyang (歐陽漢源) said. The airline has recorded a steady rise in tourist and business travel to and from Taipei, and aims to provide more flexible travel arrangements for passengers, said Ouyang, who assumed the post in July last year. From now until Saturday next week, four additional flights would depart from Singapore on Monday, Wednesday, Friday
The Ministry of National Defense yesterday reported the return of large-scale Chinese air force activities after their unexplained absence for more than two weeks, which had prompted speculation regarding Beijing’s motives. China usually sends fighter jets, drones and other military aircraft around the nation on a daily basis. Interruptions to such routine are generally caused by bad weather. The Ministry of National Defense said it had detected 26 Chinese military aircraft in the Taiwan Strait over the previous 24 hours. It last reported that many aircraft on Feb. 25, when it spotted 30 aircraft, saying Beijing was carrying out another “joint combat
Taiwan successfully defended its women’s 540 kilogram title and won its first-ever men’s 640 kg title at the 2026 World Indoor Tug of War Championships in Taipei yesterday. In the women’s event, Taiwan’s eight-person squad reached the final following a round-robin preliminary round and semifinals featuring teams from Ukraine, Japan, Thailand, Vietnam, the Basque Country and South Korea. In the finals, they swept the Basque team 2-0, giving the team composed mainly of National Taiwan Normal University students and graduates its second championship in a row, and its fourth in five years. Team captain
When Paraguayan opposition lawmaker Leidy Galeano returned from an all-expenses-paid tour of six Chinese cities late last year, she was convinced Paraguay risked missing out on major economic gains by sticking with longtime ally Taipei over Beijing — a message that participants on the trip heard repeatedly from Chinese officials. “Everything I saw there, I wanted for my country,” said Galeano, a member of the newly-formed Yo Creo party whose senior figures have spoken favorably about China. This trip and others like it — which people familiar with the visits said were at the invitation of the Chinese consulate in Sao Paulo
RSS