Taiwan is urging Canada and other allies around the world to help them in their bid for participation and access to the United Nations and its agencies and end China’s block against them.
China should not be able to rule over and block Taiwan’s access to the UN, Taiwan’s former defence minister Michael Tsai says.
“Canada, the U.S. would not accept this, (if they were in Taiwan’s shoes)” Tsai said at a press conference earlier this week in Taipei.
In addition to not being able to participate in the UN, carrying a Taiwanese passport prevents holders from entering UN offices or working at any of its organizations around the world.
This restriction also applies to journalists from Taiwan--a democratic nation--who carry a Taiwanese passport. Meanwhile, journalists from authoritarian nations are free to access the UN and its organizations.
Tsai is a member of the Taiwan United Nations Alliance (TAIUNA), an NGO based in Taipei.
TAIUNA representatives plan to hold a press conference on Friday in New York followed by a march on Saturday to raise awareness of UN Resolution 2758.
Earlier this month, Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA), announced they would focus on Resolution 2758 in off-site meetings with officials attending the UNGA to highlight China’s use of this resolution to deny Taiwan’s access to the UN.
Resolution 2758 was adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971 “…to restore all its rights to the People's Republic of China and to recognize the representatives of China to the United Nations.”
Taiwan argues the UN’s continued acceptance of this resolution “undermine (s) the objective reality that the Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign nation.”
Da-Chi Liao, acting President of the Taiwan Foundation for Democracy--a non-partisan non-profit organization—says that while the majority of the Taiwanese people want to maintain the status quo in its relationship with China, that does not include blocking Taiwan access to international organizations including the UN.
Speaking to a group of journalists on Tuesday in Taipei, Liao said her organization works with a lot of partners who support Taiwan’s access and participation at the UN.
Taiwan’s government has been campaigning for UN participation for over thirty years and last applied for membership in 2007.
Taiwan is asking Canada and other UN members to write a letter of support to the UN Secretary-General and to raise this issue at the UNGA. Though Taiwan is in close contact with the Canadian government, they have not received any assurances that Canada will respond.
TAIUNA says being blocked from UN participation is a human rights violation for Taiwan’s 23.5 million people. They are appealing to nations who support and advocate for human rights to do so for Taiwan.
Earlier this week, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell and European External Action Service Secretary General Stefano Sannino during their seventh meeting of the U.S.-EU Dialogue on China “expressed support for Taiwan’s meaningful participation in international organizations.”
On Thursday the Dutch Parliament passed UN Resolution 2758 in a vote of 147 to three.
While Canada supports Taiwan’s campaign for inclusion in the WHO/WHA, it has yet to commit to writing a letter to the Secretary-General or speaking up at the UNGA. If the government is truly committed to human rights, will it answer Taiwan’s call to press the UN Secretary-General and UN members to give this democratic nation, its officials and its journalists, access?
Janet E Silver is Vice President of World Press Freedom Canada