Justine Elliot (Richmond, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Mr Deputy Speaker. I rise to speak in support of this motion. Taiwan is a thriving democracy with a world-class health care system and it has one of the largest biotechnological science industries in the Asia-Pacific. It has the potential to make a substantial contribution to global health care, yet it remains unrepresented in the world’s most important health forum, the World Health Organisation, due largely to political reasons, the details of which all members will be aware.

Self-evidently, however, the question of Taiwan’s admission as an observer to the World Health Organisation is of a humanitarian and health related nature and is not a political question. Taiwan does not seek full membership of the World Health Organisation, and thus issues of statehood or political recognition are irrelevant to this debate. Taiwan’s participation in the World Health Organisation as an observer would not in any way contravene the organisation’s constitution. Currently, the World Health Organisation makes provision for the participation of a number of observer entities including the Holy See, the Palestinian Territories, the Order of Malta, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies.

Taiwan’s achievement in the field of health care has indeed been commendable. The 23 million people of Taiwan enjoy one of the highest life expectancies in Asia as well as very low maternal and infant mortality rates. The country has instituted highly successful disease eradication and preventative health programs. Moreover, and despite its exclusion from the World Health Organisation, Taiwan has sought to share its expertise in the field of health care through the ongoing provision of international aid. Indeed, Taiwan is engaged in long-term medical development projects throughout the world. If Taiwan were to be admitted as an observer to the World Health Organisation, it would have the opportunity to expand its already substantial contribution to international health care.

Taiwan has become a major regional trade and transport hub. In 2005 alone, over 27 million international air passengers, 225,000 international flights, 51,000 international-serviced vessels and hundreds of millions of tonnes of cargo were in transit through Taiwan. In the 12 months to 2005, over 109,000 Taiwanese tourists visited Australia. In an era of unprecedented global interconnectivity, the threat posed by infectious diseases such as AIDS and avian influenza has become even more acute. Given Taiwan’s level of integration into the international trading network, it would be a great and unnecessary risk to continue to exclude Taiwan from participating in, and contributing to, the global health care framework under the auspices of the World Health Organisation.

Due largely to its inability to gain access to the global outbreak and response network of the WHO during the SARS crisis of 2003, Taiwan’s capacity to respond to the spread of the disease was severely hampered, resulting in the tragic deaths of 73 Taiwanese SARS victims. We cannot allow a tragedy such as this to be repeated. We must recognise that disease knows no boundaries and that emergent diseases such as the highly pathogenic H5N1 strain of avian influenza constitute a grave threat to both the people of Taiwan and the health of the international community at large.

Taiwan has a population larger than that of 75 per cent of the member states of the United Nations. It is unreasonable for them to be denied the protection of the prevention and response networks and expertise of the World Health Organisation. Many parliaments and congresses throughout the world have passed resolutions supporting Taiwan’s meaningful and constructive participation in the WHO as an observer. These include the US congress and the European Parliament. In addition, a large number of medical professions and organisations such as the World Medical Association and the British Medical Association have expressed their support for Taiwan’s bid for observer status. It is the responsibility of the international community to ensure that all peoples throughout the world are able to enjoy the highest attainable standards of health. This is not a political issue. The obstruction of Taiwan’s bid for participation in the World Health Organisation should not, as a matter of international health security, and in the interests of the people of Taiwan, be permitted to continue.

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