Taipei Times
Date: May 22, 2018
By: Staff writer, with CNA, GENEVA, Switzerland
Taiwan could play an important role in global efforts to prevent the spread of communicable
Members of Switzerland’s Taiwanese community stage a protest against Taiwan’s exclusion from the annual meeting of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Switzerland, yesterday. Photo: Lu Yi-hsuan, Taipei Times
diseases, Minister of Health and Welfare Chen Shih-chung (陳時中) said on Sunday at a reception in Geneva, Switzerland, held by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
The spread of communicable diseases knows no borders, Chen said, adding that as a hub in Asia that receives many international travelers, Taiwan, which has cultivated advanced medical services and technologies, plays an important role in preventing the spread of infectious diseases.
A delegation led by Chen arrived in the city on Saturday and is to hold a series of events on the sidelines of the 71st annual meeting of the World Health Assembly (WHA), which Taiwan has for the second consecutive year not been invited to attend as an observer due to opposition from China.
At the reception, which was attended by representatives of Taiwan’s 19 allies, Chen said that the WHO’s exclusion of Taiwan from the WHA meeting is unfair to Taiwan and violates the organization’s platform, which designates healthcare as a universal value.
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