The Health Minister of China, Gao Qiang, said Monday in Geneva that what the Chinese government has done over the past year demonstrates that it is full of sincerity toward the resolution of health issues concerned by the Taiwan compatriots.

Gao told the World Health Organization's (WHO) 58th annual conference that the Chinese government is ready to make efforts to promote technical exchanges between health professionals from Taiwan and WHO.

"We hope that the Taiwan authorities will proceed from the health interests of 23 million Taiwan people and make positive response to our acts of good will," said Gao, who is also head of the Chinese delegation to the World Health Assembly (WHA) attended by the UN health agency's 192 members.

At its meeting held on Monday morning, the general committee of the WHA made the ruling of not including the Taiwan-related proposal in the provisional agenda. "We fully support this decision," said Gao.

The proposal, tabled by two countries that have "diplomatic" relations with Taiwan, requests the WHO to invite Taiwan to attend the WHA as an observer.

"It is clear to all of us that the fundamental reason for the Assembly to have repeatedly rejected the proposal ... is that the proposal violates the basic principles and purposes of the UN Charter, the Constitution of WHO, and relevant resolutions adopted by the UN General Assembly and WHA," said the Chinese minister.

"To address the Taiwan-related issues in WHO, we have always adhered to two principles: First, our determination to safeguard State sovereignty and territorial integrity will never waver. Second, our guidelines to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of the Taiwan compatriots will never change," he added.

At last year's WHA, Gao made four proposals on behalf of the Chinese government as to the issue. "In the past year, the Chinese government has adopted a series of concrete measures to implement the four proposals," he said.

"First, we sincerely invited Taiwan to send delegates to join the Chinese delegation and attend WHA together with us... Second, actively promote direct cross-Straits communication on health issues... Third, before the realization of direct consultation between the two sides, we have actively promoted the participation by medical professionals from Taiwan in technical exchanges organized by WHO," he told the conference.

According to a Memorandum of Understanding signed a few days ago between China's health ministry and the WHO secretariat, WHO secretariat can invite medical and public health experts from Taiwan to participate in its technical activities, and can also send staff members and experts to Taiwan to investigate the health or epidemic situation and to provide medical and public health technical assistance, said Gao.

In case of an acute public health emergency in Taiwan, he added, the WHO can send staff members and experts to Taiwan for field visits or provide public health technical assistance, or invite Taiwan medical and public health experts to participate in relevant technical activities.

"We look forward to the technical exchanges between health professionals from Taiwan and WHO," he said.

Source: Xinhua