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Taiwan protestors want WHO membership

07/09/2008

Protestors will hold a rally in London later today calling for Taiwan to be permitted entry to UN agencies like the World Health Organisation.

Prominent members of Britain's Taiwanese compatriot community will attend the event, where organisers hope to attract support through songs and brightly-coloured balloons.

Taiwan has ended its demands to join the UN as a fully-fledged state since new president Ma Ying-jeou was elected earlier this year. He has instead called for Taiwan to be granted access to UN agencies because a failure to do so compromises its citizens' "international human rights".

"You could say that to a very strong extent Taiwan's international space has been squeezed," event organiser Emily Wells told inthenews.co.uk.

"In this globalised world, it's very hard for a country of 23 million people. This is a human rights issue."

Ms Wells says the south-east Asian outbreak of Sars would not have affected Taiwan as badly as it did had it been a member of the World Health Organisation.

She remains doubtful about Taiwan's chances of making progress in New York but continues to seek progress. The UN's general assembly is expected to address the Taiwan issue later this month.

So far China's opposition to recognition of Taiwan has prevented any progress being made.

Since civil war split the country apart in 1949 the nationalist Kuomintang survived only on Taiwan. Mainland China fell under the control of one-party communist rule.

Q.C. Huang, honorary chairman of the Taiwanese Chamber of Commerce in Europe, believes the fall of communism will eventually see Taiwan reunited with the mainland. Despite his confidence, he hopes the international community will accelerate the process.

"I really wish the whole world will try to talk to China to change their system," he said.

"That is the final and ultimate goal that all the Chinese people… dream of. You need a mechanism to tell the other nations that we want to unite."

Mr Huang will appear at Speaker's Corner later today. He believes membership of the WHO is "better than nothing" but that it is only part of the "process" towards his ultimate goal.

"If they change the system, then the dream is achieved," he added.