WPRO's “Taiwan, China” designation protested by MOFA

2021/01/29

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Jan. 27 voiced strong discontent over the designation of “Taiwan, China” by the World Health Organization’s Western Pacific Region Office in its latest COVID-19 statistics.
 
 According to the MOFA, Taiwan has never been part of the People’s Republic of China, and only Taiwan’s democratically elected government can represent the country and its 23.5 million people. The wrongful listing runs counter to the fact that the two sides are under separate jurisdictions and infringes upon the people’s health rights, it said.
 
 The WPRO’s incorrect classification of Taiwan will result in misjudgment of the coronavirus situation by governments around the world and bodes ill for global efforts to contain the spread of the disease, the ministry said.
 
 As an organization leading international cooperation on public health and disease management, the WHO needs to uphold professionalism and not yield to political pressure such as the “one China policy,” the MOFA added.
 
 The ministry said the government will continue to demand the WHO and WPRO immediately correct the erroneous label as well as urge the U.N. body to invite experts from Taiwan to take part in all of its activities, mechanisms and meetings related to the pandemic.

Source: Taiwan Today (https://taiwantoday.tw/index.php)