The UN Issue: MOFA adopts a new strategy of 'Presenting Two proposals'

The 60th Session of the UN General Assembly is going to be held on September 13, 2005. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has adopted a new strategy of ¡§presenting two proposals¡¨. Fourteen of our diplomatic allies have jointly submitted two separate proposals to the UN General Assembly today. The two proposals urge the General Assembly to ¡§ensure the representation of the 23 million people of Taiwan in the United Nations¡¨ and to request ¡§a proactive role by the United Nations in maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait¡¨ respectively.

The representatives of 11 of our diplomatic allies to the UN¡Xthe Marshall Islands, Republic of Nauru, Republic of Palau, the Solomon Islands, Burkina Faso, Republic of Chad, the Gambia, Republic of Malawi, Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Belize and St. Vincent and the Grenadines¡Xsent a proposal entitled ¡§The question of the representation of the 23 million people of Taiwan in the United Nations¡¨ (hereinafter referred to as the ¡§participation proposal¡¨) to the UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan at noon on August 11 (Thursday) EST, and requested that the UN General Assembly recognize the representation of the 23 million people in the UN system, and adopt and implement appropriate measures to realize this.

In addition, the representatives of 13 of our diplomatic allies to the UN¡Xthe Marshall Islands, Republic of Nauru, Republic of Palau, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Burkina Faso, Republic of Chad, The Gambia, Republic of Malawi, Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, Republic of Guatemala, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, and St. Kitts and Nevis¡Xalso sent a proposal at the same time entitled ¡§A proactive role for the United Nations in maintaining peace in the Taiwan Strait¡¨ (hereinafter referred to as the ¡§peace proposal¡¨) to UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on the same day. While urging both sides of the Taiwan Strait to resolve disputes through peaceful means, this proposal also requests that the UN Secretary-General appoint a special envoy or a fact-finding mission to evaluate the security situation in the Taiwan Strait, report to the General Assembly or other relevant bodies and adopt necessary measures to encourage and assist both sides of the Taiwan Strait to commence upon peaceful dialogue and exchanges. In addition, since the Republic of Kiribati does not have a delegation in the UN headquarters, its Secretary for Foreign Affairs and Immigration sent a letter to the UN Secretary-General to submit the ¡§peace proposal¡¨ for us.

On behalf of the people and government of the Republic of China (Taiwan), the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Tan Sun Chen, expressed his most sincere gratitude to the above-mentioned allies for their support, which is based on the universal values of democracy, human rights, mutual prosperity and justice.

Minister Chen pointed out that there is high consensus in Taiwan to promote participation in the UN. Even though our efforts over the past 12 years have yet to achieve a major breakthrough due to strong opposition from China and international realities, there have been some noteworthy developments this year. For example, the UN is celebrating its 60th anniversary; China adopted the so-called ¡§anti-secession law¡¨ on March 14; and, in March, UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan compiled a report on UN reforms entitled In larger freedom: towards development, security and human rights for all. This Ministry, after consultations with all parties concerned, decided that in addition to the traditional ¡§participation proposal¡¨, another ¡§peace proposal¡¨ would be submitted as well this year, and that this would be based on the UN¡¦s core goal of maintaining peace, so as to strive for more concern and efforts to maintain security in the Taiwan Strait on the part of the international community.

The explanatory memorandum attached to the ¡§participation proposal¡¨ submitted by our allies stressed that universality is one of the core principles of the UN. Resolution 2758 (XXVI) does not resolve the issue of the representation of the people of Taiwan in the UN. The Republic of China (Taiwan) is a sovereign state. It is also a constructive member of the international community and a dynamic democracy. Excluding Taiwan from the UN is a form of discrimination against the people of Taiwan which deprives them of their fundamental rights to benefit from and contribute to the UN. Taiwan has made long-term commitments to the UN Charter, international law and international cooperation. Taiwan¡¦s participation in the UN will help maintain peace, prosperity and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. Granting the Republic of China (Taiwan) representation in the UN will benefit all mankind.

In the second proposal (the ¡§peace proposal¡¨), our allies stressed that the maintenance of peace and security is a goal specified in the UN Charter, a necessary foundation for safeguarding human rights and a common goal of all UN members in the 21st Century. Peace in the Taiwan Strait relates to peace, prosperity and stability in the Asia-Pacific region as a whole. China has threatened to use force against Taiwan. It has endangered the peace and stability of the Taiwan Strait and the Asia-Pacific region, and this warrants a heightened concern by the whole world. Therefore, our allies are requesting that the UN pay more attention to this issue, adopt all necessary measures and encourage and assist both sides to undertake peaceful dialogue and exchanges.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that Taiwan's efforts to participate in the UN are not intended to challenge the rights or seat of any UN Member States. The Beijing authorities must understand that repressing the efforts of the 23 million people of Taiwan to participate in the international community will only arouse resentment from the people of Taiwan, overseas Taiwanese and compatriots who care about Taiwan. It will not help improve cross-Strait relations, and will undermine peace in the Taiwan Strait. It is hoped that the Beijing authorities will face the fact that both sides have been ruled separately by different governments for more than half a century, and that Beijing will renounce its unwise enactment of the ¡§anti-secession law¡¨, which sets the conditions for the use of force against Taiwan, and cease its barbaric attempts to constrain and repress Taiwan in the international community. Only by doing this can both sides resolve disputes in a peaceful manner and develop the cross-strait relations in a positive and mutually beneficial direction. The government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) is convinced that if both sides of the Taiwan Strait can make efforts for world peace, security and development, this will help both sides create a win-win future of mutual trust and mutual interest.

Minister Chen has also emphasized that in this era of the ¡§global village¡¨, Taiwan¡¦s absence from international cooperation is like a hole in the ozone layer, which has negative impact on the entire world. Minister Chen urges all UN Member States to acknowledge the right of the government of the Republic of China (Taiwan) to strive for the fundamental rights of the 23 million people of Taiwan in participating in the UN. He also calls upon them to exercise moral courage and determination to reform; fulfil the UN's obligations to maintain international peace and security; request that China renounce its threats of force against Taiwan; assist in maintaining the status quo and peace in the Taiwan Strait; and support the representation of the 23 million people of Taiwan in the UN with concrete actions by allowing Taiwan to join with all UN Member States in making contributions to international peace, security, human rights, humanitarian affairs and economic cooperation.

A couple of months ago, 14 of our diplomatic allies sent a joint letter to the President of the General Assembly, the UN Secretary-General and the President of the Security Council. They emphasized that China¡¦s ¡§anti-secession law¡¨ is not only a threat to the status quo in the Taiwan Strait, but also endangers the peace and stability of East Asia. The letter was sent to all UN Member States through the UN Secretariat as an official document of the Assembly. Minister Chen once again expresses his gratitude for this.