World Health Assembly rejects again Taiwan-related proposal

Photo taken on March 30, 2021 shows an exterior view of the headquarters of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva, Switzerland. (Xinhua/Chen Junxia)

Prior to the opening of the WHA, nearly 90 countries expressed their adherence to the one-China principle and opposition to Taiwan's participation in the WHA through sending letters to the WHO and other ways.

GENEVA, May 23 (Xinhua) -- The World Health Assembly (WHA), the highest decision-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO), and the General Committee of the WHA on Monday seperately decided not to include in its agenda a proposal on Taiwan's participation in the annual assembly as an observer.

The decision at the 75th WHA fully demonstrates that the one-China principle has become the consensus of the international community and represents the aspiration of the people and the trend of the times, which cannot be stopped. The political manipulation of Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities through the pandemic wins no support, brings disgrace to themselves and is doomed to fail.

On the basis of adherence to the one-China principle on both sides of the Taiwan Straits, the Chinese central government has agreed to allow the Taiwan region to participate in the WHA as an observer for eight consecutive years from 2009 to 2016.

Since the DPP came into power, it has stubbornly adhered to the separatist position of "Taiwan independence" and refused to recognize the 1992 Consensus that embodies the one-China principle. As a result, the political foundation for the Taiwan region to join the WHA has ceased to exist.

Since 2017, the Chinese central government has suspended the special arrangement for the Taiwan region to participate in the WHA. The WHA has also rejected Taiwan-related proposals for many years.

As COVID-19 continues to spread across the world, the international community has expected this year's WHA to strengthen cooperation and solidarity in fighting the epidemic. However, the DPP authorities have gone against the trend of history and insisted on making Taiwan-related proposals, which fully exposed its political plot to engage in "Taiwan independence" separatist activities by hyping up its participation in the WHA.

The vast majority of the world's countries uphold a just position on Taiwan-related issues at the WHA. Prior to the opening of the WHA, nearly 90 countries expressed their adherence to the one-China principle and opposition to Taiwan's participation in the WHA through sending letters to the WHO and other ways.

Chen Xu, China's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Office at Geneva, said in a statement at the meeting that the Taiwan-related proposal has no legal basis, stressing the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Resolution 2758 and WHA Resolution 25.1 provide the legal basis for the WHO to abide by the one-China principle.

The Taiwan region's participation in the WHA must be handled in accordance with the one-China principle and through cross-strait consultations, he noted, adding since the DPP authorities obstinately adhere to the "Taiwan independence" stance, the political foundation for Taiwan to join the WHA has ceased to exist.

According to Chen, the Taiwan-related proposal has no factual basis. The central government has not only invited experts from Taiwan to visit Wuhan, but also specially notified the way to obtain the virus gene sequence, he stressed.

Since April 2021, as many as 47 experts from Taiwan were approved to participate in the WHO-organized technical activities for 44 times in total, Chen said, noting there isn't any so-called "international epidemic prevention gap."

The Chinese diplomat also emphasized that there is no international consensus on the Taiwan-related proposal. The WHA has already reached a conclusion on the Taiwan-related issue and has, for years, refused to discuss Taiwan-related proposals.

The real purpose of the DPP authorities' attempt to exploit COVID-19 for political manipulation is to "use the pandemic to seek independence," Chen said, adding that the endorsement of some certain countries for the Taiwan authorities is a political trick of "using Taiwan to contain China," which is bound to fail.