Taiwan urges WHO to share Covid-19 success at annual assembly

By Antonio Broto

Geneva, May 16 (efe-epa).- Taiwan was ahead of the game when by December 2019 the country had already deployed preventive measures to deal with rumors of atypical pneumonia in China.

The island in east Asia has only recorded seven Covid-19 deaths and now wants to share its success story at the World Health Organization, but political obstacles have so far prevented this from happening.

On Monday the WHO’s 73rd annual assembly, this year focused on the coronavirus pandemic, will take place in a virtual format and Taiwan wants to take part as an observer.

Taiwan, officially the Republic of China, cannot be a member state of WHO because it was expelled from the United Nations in 1971.

The island-state has been claiming its seat back since 1997, and managed to recoup it between 2009 and 2016.

But Taiwan’s contributions could be more valuable than ever and in recent weeks have ramped up efforts to rejoin the assembly.

“We want to share our experience of the coronavirus,” Taiwanese diplomatic sources in Geneva told Efe.

The secret behind Taiwan’s effective management of the Covid-19 outbreak began with a fortuitous event.

Expert Luo Yi-jun, deputy director of the island’s Center for Disease Control, was plagued by insomnia on the night of 31 December.