Allies protest UN treatment of Taiwan
　

UNACCEPTABLE: Twelve allies signed a petition questioning the international body's rejection of Taiwan's application and interpretation of Taiwan as being part of China

STAFF WRITER, WITH CNA
Saturday, Feb 09, 2008, Page 1

Twelve of Taiwan's diplomatic allies yesterday signed a petition protesting the UN's interpretation of UN Resolution 2758 and the world body's inappropriate listing of Taiwan as a province of China in a recent press release.

Two other allies -- Honduras and Kiribati -- filed separate protest letters.

Following the rejection of the Taiwanese government's first attempt to join the UN last year using the name Taiwan, the 12 allies delivered a petition to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Sept. 25 asking the international body to process Taiwan's application through unbiased channels. The petition was returned by the UN at the end of October.

Dissatisfied with the UN's response, Taiwan's allies yesterday filed another petition to Ban's office in support of Taiwan's entry.

The 12 allies are St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Palau, Gambia, the Republic of Sao Tome and Principe, the Solomon Islands, Swaziland, Tuvalu, the Republic of Nauru, the Marshall Islands, Saint Kitts & Nevis, Belize and St. Lucia, the nation's newest ally.

Honduras and Kiribati, which do not have a representative office in the UN, decided to file separate letters.

In the letter, the allies said the UN had misinterpreted Resolution 2758 as stipulating that Taiwan was part of China. And in returning Taiwan's application to join the UN, the UN Secretariat had trespassed on the UN Security Council's jurisdiction.

The allies said they do not view Taiwan as part of China and support Taiwan's application as a new UN member. They asked Ban to be cautious about adopting advice and asked him to process Taiwan's application in accordance with the UN Constitution and UN Security Council regulations.

Kenneth Liao (廖港民), director of the Taipei Economic and Cultural Office in New York, who doubles as the head of Taiwan's UN working group, told the press that the nation's allies found the UN's treatment of Taiwan's application unacceptable, and that they voluntarily signed the latest protest.

The government also cannot accept the UN's handling of the issue, he said.

In response to the allies' prompt decision to take action during the Lunar New year instead of waiting until this summer, Liao said that Taiwan's UN working group in New York was already working like a UN permanent representative, and that participation in UN activities has already become a year-round activity for Taiwan.

The nation applied to join the UN under the name "Taiwan" for the first time during the UN's 64th General Assembly on Sept. 18 last year, but failed to gain admission. It marked the nation's 15th attempt to join the UN.