[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 154 Introduced in House (IH)]






109th CONGRESS
  1st Session
H. CON. RES. 154

 Expressing the sense of Congress that Taiwan should be accorded full 
 and equal membership in the World Health Organization (WHO) and other 
                      international organizations.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                              May 17, 2005

 Mr. Burton of Indiana submitted the following concurrent resolution; 
     which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                         CONCURRENT RESOLUTION


 
 Expressing the sense of Congress that Taiwan should be accorded full 
 and equal membership in the World Health Organization (WHO) and other 
                      international organizations.

Whereas for the ninth year in a row, the assembly of the World Health 
        Organization (WHO), meeting in Geneva, Switzerland, for its annual 
        session in May 2005, has rejected Taiwan's efforts to gain observer 
        status as a ``health entity'';
Whereas the World Health Assembly has allowed observers to participate in the 
        activities of the organization, including the Order of Malta, the Holy 
        See, and even the Palestine Liberation Organization;
Whereas Taiwan has in recent years repeatedly expressed its strong desire to 
        join the World Health Organization and other international 
        organizations;
Whereas Taiwan was a founding member of the World Health Organization, but lost 
        its seat in the United Nations and its constituent agencies after the 
        United Nations voted in 1972 to recognize the People's Republic of 
        China;
Whereas Taiwan's 22.8 million people will benefit from Taiwan's membership in 
        the World Health Organization through engagement with the international 
        community in common pursuit to raise the quality of public health and 
        provide for the welfare of its citizens;
Whereas Taiwan has demonstrated a strong commitment to improving the quality of 
        life of its citizenry, has one of the highest life expectancy levels in 
        Asia, and has maternal and infant mortality rates comparable to those of 
        Western countries;
Whereas Taiwan has expressed a willingness to assist financially and technically 
        in international aid and health activities supported by the World Health 
        Organization;
Whereas the exclusion of Taiwan from the World Health Organization has cost 
        Taiwanese lives during outbreaks of diseases, including the Severe Acute 
        Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), which caused 73 deaths in 2003, and an 
        enterovirus epidemic in 1998;
Whereas Avian influenza (bird flu) reemerged in Asia in 2003 and was reported in 
        Cambodia, the People's Republic of China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, 
        Pakistan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, and Vietnam;
Whereas SARS and Avian influenza outbreaks illustrate that disease knows no 
        boundaries and emphasizes the importance of allowing all people access 
        to the World Health Organization; and
Whereas, as the pace of globalization quickens the spread of infectious 
        diseases, it is critical that all people, including the people of 
        Taiwan, be given the opportunity to participate in international health 
        organizations such as the World Health Organization: Now, therefore, be 
        it
    Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate concurring),  
That it is the sense of the Congress that--
            (1) Taiwan and its 22.8 million people deserve full and 
        equal membership in the World Health Organization (WHO) and 
        other international organizations;
            (2) the United States should take a leading role in 
        condemning Taiwan's exclusion from the World Health Assembly in 
        2005; and
            (3) the United States should take a leading role in gaining 
        international support for Taiwan's participation and membership 
        in the World Health Organization and other international 
        organizations.
                                 <all>