Tancredo Denounces Health Organization for Taiwan Slight

Illegal immigration isn’t the only thing on Tom Tancredo’s mind. The Colorado congressman and presidential candidate is again making noise about Taiwan, this time admonishing the World Health Organization (WHO) for failing to tell Taiwanese officials about a food-borne illness threat.Tancredo sent a letter Wednesday to WHO Director General Dr. Margaret Chan asking why the organization left it up to the Chinese government to inform Taiwan about a food-borne outbreak in Thailand, for which Taiwan was at risk. China waited two weeks before informing Taiwanese officials of the threat.

The WHO informed only China because Taiwan is still considered by many international bodies and the United States to be under Chinese rule, even though the island nation functions as a sovereign, democratic country. For years, Tancredo has been a strong supporter of Taiwanese independence. He has sponsored four measures in Congress this year relating to the issue, including a resolution “expressing the sense of Congress that the United States should resume normal diplomatic relations with Taiwan.” The measure attracted 10 co-sponsors, but languishes in the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

In his latest act of support for Taiwan, Tancredo called on the WHO to put health before politics.

“I sincerely hope that in the future Dr. Chan will focus more on protecting public health and safety and less on complying with the petty parochialism of Communist China’s foreign policy demands,” the congressman said in a statement.

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