Taiwan has stated its achievement in health, literacy and social welfare that are made above the standards of United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals and calls on the UN to open to Taiwan’s participation as a valuable contributor in the international community including India.

Taiwan’s Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu said in an article “UN Global Goals-Taiwan can help” that, in line with the recommendations taken by the UN General Assembly’s 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, Taiwan released its 1st Voluntary National Review in 2017, detailing the nation’s improvement to zero hunger, 98.7% literacy rate, 2.4‰ mortality rate for children under five, as well as the maternal mortality rate of just 11.6 per 100,000 people.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted at the 70th session of the UN General Assembly in 2015, setting bold goals to shift the world onto a sustainable, resilient path wherein a formation of a revitalized Global Partnership for Sustainable Development for including all countries, all stakeholders and all people was pledged, the article said.

Despite such a pledge, Taiwan’s 23 million people have been left out of this global effort, as Taiwan’s tourists, experts and professionals are denied entry into UN premises simply because the UN does not accept the Republic of China (Taiwan)’s passport. “This violates the principle of universality upon which the UN was founded and deprives Taiwan as well as the international society of opportunities to work together for the common good,” the minister said.

The Republic of China (Taiwan)’s passport is recognized by almost every country in the world, yet the UN has even refused to accredit Taiwan’s journalists covering the world’s apex political body’s meetings and activities, the article said. It went on to express Taiwan’s disappointment that the United Nations (UN) continues to ‘misuse’ the General Assembly Resolution 2758 (XXVI) of 1971 to justify Taiwan’s exclusion and isolation.

“As we have pointed out before, this resolution neither addresses the issue of representation of Taiwan and its people in the UN system, nor defines the relationship between Taiwan and China. The so-called one-China principle has been challenged by many UN Member States. It is wrong for the UN, an organization created to serve all of humankind, to unilaterally define Taiwan’s status,’’ the minister said.

Wu pointed out that Taiwan, though not being allowed to participate in the UN’s meetings, activities and mechanisms, has never shirked its duties as a responsible stakeholder, adding Taiwan also provides development assistance to other countries through the International Cooperation and Development Fund (Taiwan ICDF), Taiwan’s official development assistance organization, in the Pacific, Asia, Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean.

These Taiwan ICDF programs aim to help countries in these regions to achieve clean energy, food security, food safety, sustainable agriculture, better education, health and well-being for all age groups, and disaster reduction and adaptation; Taiwan ICDF also works with the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development to assist countries in Central Asia and Central and Eastern Europe to develop market economies and a green economy, the minister said.

“Article 1 of the UN Charter proclaims that the purposes of the organization are to ‘achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights,’ by excluding a willing and able partner like Taiwan, the UN not only violates the fundamental human rights of Taiwan’s 23 million people but also greatly harms human welfare,” the minister said.

He stressed that global cooperation that includes all countries, all stakeholders, and all people is becoming ever more important at this critical juncture when humankind is facing multiple challenges. The minister called on the UN to stand up to external pressures and open its doors to Taiwan to remain relevant to all people.