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11 August 1999
Excellency,
Upon the instruction of our respective Governments, we
have the honour to request you, pursuant to rule 14 of the rules of procedure of the
General Assembly, to include a supplementary item in the agenda of the fifty-fourth
session of the Assembly entitled "Need to examine the exceptional international
situation pertaining to the Republic of China on Taiwan, to ensure that the fundamental
right of its twenty-two million people to participate in the work and activities of the
United Nations is fully respected." Pursuant to rule 20 of the rules of procedure
of the General Assembly, we attach an explanatory memorandum (see annex
I) and a draft resolution (see annex II).
Please accept, Excellency, the assurances of our highest
consideration.
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ANNEX I
Explanatory Memorandum
1. Each side of the Taiwan Strait has been ruled by a
distinct and separate Government since 1949.
The Government of the Republic of China, which was founded
in 1912, moved to Taiwan in 1949. That same year, the People's Republic of China was
established on the Chinese mainland. Since then, the Republic of China on Taiwan and the
People's Republic of China on the mainland have coexisted on their respective side of the
Taiwan Strait, with neither subject to the other's rule. Over that past half century, each
side has developed its own political system, social values and foreign relations.
Therefore, each of these two Governments can only speak for and represent the people
actually under its jurisdiction on its respective side of the Taiwan Strait.
2. The General Assembly of the United Nations adopted
Resolution 2758 (XXVI) in 1971 to confer United Nations membership upon the People's
Republic of China. The Resolution, however, did not address the issue of representation in
the UN for the people of the Republic of China on Taiwan.
From 1950 to 1971, the United Nations considered the
question of China representation. The question was considered against the background of
political and ideological confrontation created by the Cold War. In October 1971, at its
twenty-sixth session, the United Nations General Assembly adopted resolution 2758 (XXVI),
which decided that the China seat would be taken by the People's Republic of China. This
Resolution, however, failed to address the issue of legitimate representation for the
people on Taiwan in the UN.
3. The Republic of China, a country with significant
achievements, is a constructive and responsible member of the international community.
The Republic of China on Taiwan has coexisted with the
People's Republic of China on the Chinese mainland since 1949 and has been a successful
and responsible member of the international community. In fact:
- The Republic of China has continued to exercise effective
rule over its territories of Taiwan, Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other islands. It has a
population of twenty-two million and a democratic government. Above all, the Republic of
China is a peace-loving country, which is able and willing to carry out the obligations
contained in the Charter of the United Nations.
- The Republic of China on Taiwan has achieved what many have
described as a 'miracle' in terms of economic development over the past few decades. It is
now the world's nineteenth largest economy in terms of GNP, and the fourteenth most
important trading country. It is also one of the major investors in East Asia and its
foreign reserves rank among the top three in the world. All these achievements make the
Republic of China on Taiwan, in fact, one of the most successful examples of economic
development in the twentieth century.
- The Republic of China is also a humanitarian-minded
country. Its international prestige in rendering assistance to developing countries
increases daily. Over the years it has sent over 10,000 experts to train technicians all
over the world, especially in Asia, the South Pacific, Latin America and Africa, to help
develop their agricultural, fishery and livestock industries. It also has provided over
US$150 million in disaster relief throughout the world, including Mainland China, in the
past several years, and has responded to the United Nations appeals for emergency relief
and rehabilitation assistance to countries that have suffered from natural disasters and
wars. Recently, it has pledged a foreign aid package equivalent to US$300 million for
humanitarian assistance to Kosovar refugees and area reconstruction.
- Currently, the Republic of China on Taiwan contributes
capital to regional development programs through institutions such as the Asian
Development Bank, the Central American Bank for Economic Integration, the Inter-American
Development Bank, and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development.
- From these major indicators, there is no doubt that the
Republic of China has been playing a positive role in promoting world trade and in
eradicating poverty. It is indeed a constructive and responsible member, a fact that
merits recognition by Members of the United Nations.
4. The Republic of China is a free and democratic
country. The United Nations should consider with an open mind the appeal of its twenty-two
million people for their own representation in the Organization.
Resolution 2758 (XXVI), a product of the Cold War era,
fails to provide for the right of the twenty-two million people of the Republic of China
on Taiwan to representation by their actual and legitimate delegates in the UN and its
related organizations.
However, tremendous changes have taken place in the past
two decades. The Cold War has ended, with constructive dialogue and negotiation replacing
the hostile confrontation of the past. As an international organization in which every
country is represented, where Palestine has achieved a unique status and other entities
have been given a place to speak for their peoples, the United Nations should now address
this unreasonable and untenable situation.
The Republic of China on Taiwan has carried out a series
of political reforms over the past decade or so. Today its people enjoy a high degree of
freedom and democracy. It is also determined to find a way to develop cross-strait
relations by peaceful means. The Government of the Republic of China on Taiwan seeks a
reasonable role in the United Nations and its related organizations by which it can
represent the twenty-two million people on Taiwan. Members of the United Nations should
consider with an open mind the appeal of these twenty-two million people for their
participation in that Organization.
5. The participation of the Republic of China on Taiwan
in the United Nations poses no barrier to the future peaceful and democratic unification
of a divided China; indeed, it can be conducive to regional peace and security.
Since 1949, the Republic of China on Taiwan and the
People's Republic of China on the mainland have developed under two different systems of
political and social values. The People's Republic of China has never exercised any
control over the twenty-two million people on Taiwan. Therefore, the citizens of the
Republic of China on Taiwan are entitled to their own actual and legitimate representation
in the United Nations.
The geographical position of Taiwan makes it a focal point
of the entire Asia-Pacific region. Accordingly, the stability of the Taiwan Strait and its
periphery is vital to the maintenance of peace and security for the region in particular
and the world in general. A role for the Republic of China on Taiwan in the United Nations
would bring the area under the peace and security mechanism contained in the United
Nations, thus enhancing the maintenance of peace and security in the region.
The cases of the now unified East Germany and West
Germany, and the still divided Republic of Korea and Democratic People's Republic of
Korea, serve as precedents for parallel representation of divided nations in the United
Nations. The exchanges between East Germany and West Germany via the United Nations and
other international organizations contributed not only to regional peace and security, but
also to their peaceful unification in 1990. As a universal organization, the United
Nations should therefore encourage both sides of the Taiwan Strait to work and cooperate
in that Organization and its related organizations.
6. The United Nations General Assembly should act to
ensure that the voice of the twenty-two million people on Taiwan is heard in the United
Nations and its related organizations.
Resolution 2758 (XXVI) does not constitute a
comprehensive, reasonable and just solution. It only settled the issue of representation
for the people on the Chinese mainland, while failing to accommodate the aspirations of
twenty-two million people on Taiwan to participate in the work and activities of the most
important global organization-the United Nations and its related organizations.
The exclusion of the Republic of China on Taiwan from the
United Nations is anachronistic, unjust and potentially injurious to international peace
and security. The United Nations must address this situation in order to ensure that the
twenty-two million people of the Republic of China have a direct and representative voice
in the Organization and its related agencies. A role in the United Nations for the
Republic of China would benefit that Organization in particular and the international
community in general via the mechanisms provided in that Organization.
ANNEX II
Draft Resolution
The General Assembly,
Considering the fact that the
twenty-two million people of the Republic of China on Taiwan have no actual and legitimate
representative in the United Nations;
Recognizing that since 1949 the
Government of the Republic of China has exercised effective control and jurisdiction over
the Taiwan area while the Government of the People's Republic of China has exercised
effective control and jurisdiction over the Chinese mainland during the same time period;
Acknowledging that the Republic of
China on Taiwan is a constructive and responsible member of the international community,
with a democratic system and a strong, dynamic economy, whose participation in the United
Nations would benefit the international community;
Observing that the geographical
location of Taiwan is vital to the peace and security of the East Asian and Pacific
regions;
Mindful of the fact that, while seeking
to participate in the United Nations, the Republic of China continues to espouse hope for
the eventual unification of China;
Noting the declaration of the
Government of the Republic of China on Taiwan that it accepts without condition the
obligations contained in the Charter of the United Nations and that it is able and willing
to carry out those obligations; and
Affirming the significance that
recognition of and respect for the fundamental rights of the twenty-two million people of
the Republic of China on Taiwan would have for upholding the principles and spirit of the
Charter of the United Nations;
hereby
- Decides to establish a working group of the General
Assembly with the mandate of examining thoroughly the exceptional international situation
pertaining to the Republic of China on Taiwan, in order to ensure that its twenty-two
million people participate, with a direct and representative voice, in the Organization
and its related agencies; and
- Requests the working group to commence its work during the
fifty-forth session of the General Assembly, and make appropriate recommendations for an
equitable and practical solution to the question of the participation of the Republic of
China in the United Nations.
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