Senate Resolution 135 - Introduced

PAG LIN





  1  1                SENATE RESOLUTION NO.    
  1  2    BY  BEALL, BLACK, KIBBIE, McCOY, GRONSTAL, BEHN,
  1  3        BOETTGER, BOLKCOM, CONNOLLY, and IVERSON
  1  4 A Resolution supporting a proposal to invite the
  1  5    Republic of China (Taiwan) to participate in the
  1  6    upcoming meeting of the World Health Assembly as an
  1  7    observer.
  1  8    WHEREAS, the next World Health Assembly meeting is
  1  9 scheduled to take place on May 18, 2006, in Geneva,
  1 10 Switzerland; and
  1 11    WHEREAS, the Republic of China, commonly known as
  1 12 Taiwan, was a founding member of the World Health
  1 13 Organization and participated for 24 years as a full
  1 14 member contributing to the achievement of the
  1 15 organization's objectives; and
  1 16    WHEREAS, in 1972, in the wake of the admission of
  1 17 the People's Republic of China to the United Nations,
  1 18 Taiwan's membership in the World Health Organization
  1 19 was discontinued; and
  1 20    WHEREAS, Taiwanese health officials and medical
  1 21 professionals have been unable to participate in World
  1 22 Health Organization forums and workshops regarding
  1 23 technological advances in the diagnosis, monitoring,
  1 24 and control of diseases since 1972, and have been
  1 25 denied the right to maintain contact and coordination
  1 26 with the World Health Organization in emergency
  1 27 situations involving the containment and cure of
  1 28 existing and newly emerging infectious diseases; and
  1 29    WHEREAS, Taiwan's location at the juncture of
  1 30 important maritime routes between northeast and
  2  1 southeast Asia has resulted in extensive world trade
  2  2 with Taiwan, a thriving Taiwanese tourism industry,
  2  3 and a large foreign migrant worker population in
  2  4 Taiwan; and
  2  5    WHEREAS, Taiwan's absence from the World Health
  2  6 Organization system has become a missing link in the
  2  7 global framework of providing health care; and
  2  8    WHEREAS, the granting of observer status to Taiwan
  2  9 would not constitute a challenge to participation by
  2 10 the People's Republic of China in the World Health
  2 11 Organization and would demonstrate that the
  2 12 organization is inclusive with regard to Taiwan's 23
  2 13 million inhabitants; and
  2 14    WHEREAS, as a democratically elected government,
  2 15 the government of Taiwan has a duty and responsibility
  2 16 to ensure that the people of Taiwan are represented by
  2 17 an organization which establishes and oversees an
  2 18 international framework for the control of disease and
  2 19 the promotion of universal health; and
  2 20    WHEREAS, Taiwan has made substantial progress in
  2 21 the health field, has one of the highest life
  2 22 expectancy rates in Asia, has maternal and infant
  2 23 mortality rates comparable to those in western
  2 24 countries, has eradicated infectious diseases such as
  2 25 cholera, smallpox, and the plague, and has been the
  2 26 first country in the region to eradicate polio and
  2 27 provide children with hepatitis B vaccinations; and
  2 28    WHEREAS, Taiwan has expressed a willingness in
  2 29 recent years to provide financial and technological
  2 30 assistance in international aid and health activities
  3  1 supported by the World Health Organization; NOW
  3  2 THEREFORE,
  3  3    BE IT RESOLVED BY THE SENATE, That the Senate
  3  4 supports the granting of observer status to Taiwan
  3  5 during the World Health Assembly to be held in May
  3  6 2006; and
  3  7    BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That an official copy of
  3  8 this Resolution be prepared and forwarded by the
  3  9 Secretary of the Senate to the President of the United
  3 10 States, the government of Taiwan, the Taipei economic
  3 11 and cultural office, located in Chicago, Illinois, and
  3 12 the governing authority of the World Health
  3 13 Organization.
  3 14 LSB 6618SS 81
  3 15 rn:rj/sh/8