ISLAND VOICES
China is thwarting Taiwan on SARS
By Raymond L.S. Wang
Raymond L.S. Wang is the consul general in the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in Honolulu.
Issues such as global health and the environment know no boundaries. SARS is a perfect example.
While every country works closely with the World Health Organization to contain SARS, it is rather shocking that Taiwan has had to fight this difficult battle alone. The reason is very simple: Taiwan is not a member of the WHO, due to Beijing's ruthless political blockade.
Luckily, through the concerted efforts of the people on Taiwan, Taiwan's preventative measures are beginning to bear fruit, and the SARS situation in Taiwan is expected to improve gradually in the coming days.
However, China continues to pretend that it has always cared for the health of the people of Taiwan and that it has taken many measures to help Taiwan fight SARS. This is entirely untrue and hypocritical. That argument did not have any credibility during the pre-SARS period, and now it has none at all.
As Taiwan officials note, China cannot even competently care for the health interests of China, much less anyone else. China has never cared for Taiwan's health needs. For example, in 1998, when enterovirus broke out in Taiwan causing 80 deaths, and in 1999, when a major earthquake hit Taiwan causing 2,400 deaths, China used its diplomatic muscle to obstruct emergency assistance from the WHO and other international organizations to Taiwan. Unbelievably, China also obstructed the WHO's plan to send experts to assist Taiwan during the first two months of the onslaught of SARS in Taiwan.
This year, Taiwan's effort to join the WHO did not succeed, but Taiwan has gained staunch support from the World Medical Association, the U.S. Congress and the European Parliament, as well as from many other prestigious international medical bodies. Taiwan's inclusion in the WHO will be beneficial for both Taiwan and the world.
It is only through the principles of "good-will reconciliation, active cooperation and permanent peace" that cross-strait relations can be improved.
