Nearly 200 Taiwanese in Canada marched at Toronto City Hall yesterday to call for Taiwan's inclusion in the UN and International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), ahead of assemblies of both organizations this month.
The event was organized by the Chinese Community Centre of Ontario with support from members of Taiwan's Overseas Community Affairs Council.
Photo: CNA
Escorted by eight Toronto police officers, participants chanted "UN for Taiwan" as they marched.
Among them was Richard Clough, who traveled from Waterloo with his family.
He told reporters it was "really not fair" that "Taiwan has been shut out from the United Nations since 1972."
Clough, whose wife is a former president of the K-W Taiwanese Canadian Association, said he has visited Taiwan three times and "loved it."
In a speech at the rally, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Toronto Director-General Liang Yi-peng (梁毅鵬) thanked participants and stressed Taiwan's case for UN membership.
He said that in the past 80 years, including under UN Resolution 2758, Taiwan has never been recognized as part of the People's Republic of China.
"It was not so in the past, it is not so now, nor will it ever be in the future," he said.
Turning to aviation, Liang said that Taiwan serves as a key transit point in Asia, with about 70 percent of travelers flying from Toronto to Taiwan being foreign nationals.
He said Taiwan's participation in the ICAO is therefore vital to aviation safety in the region.
The 80th UN General Assembly is scheduled to open on Tuesday next week, while the ICAO general assembly is to be held on Sept. 23.
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