"On Jan 6, leaders of the ASEAN plan to hold a special summit on disaster assistance in Jakarta. In addition, the UN is holding its own disaster conference in Geneva on Jan. 11.
Taiwan has not been invited to attend either conference." :fume:
taipeitimes.com/News/front/a … 2003217941
Is there any site of ASEAN or the UN where we can go and make a noise of sorts??
So I guess they won’t be accepting any aid contributions from Taiwan then either… Politics above disaster relief, what a crock. I guess they didn’t learn anything from the SARS fiasco after all. :fume:
[quote=“crazyazn”]"On Jan 6, leaders of the ASEAN plan to hold a special summit on disaster assistance in Jakarta. In addition, the UN is holding its own disaster conference in Geneva on Jan. 11.
Taiwan has not been invited to attend either conference." :fume:
taipeitimes.com/News/front/a … 2003217941
Is there any site of ASEAN or the UN where we can go and make a noise of sorts??[/quote]
:newbie:
Of course Taiwan was not invited. It’s not a member of either organization.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not supportive of Taiwan’s exclusion at all, it pisses me off too. But I’m no longer surprised by it. Taiwan is never invited or allowed to participate in any such international meetings unless it is a member and China does its best to keep Taiwan out of as many groups as possible. That’s just the way it is.
Fortunately, Taiwan is a member of a small handful of international groups, most (or all) of which base membership not on status as a country but on other criteria, such as APEC, whose membership is open to “regional economies,” thereby allowing Taiwan in. Joining WTO was also a fantastic success.
But, as you surely know, Taiwan lobbies annually to join the UN, the WHO and other such organizations and is regularly refused. I believe Taiwan should focus on joining every international group possible, no matter how petty (International Toilet-Cleaning Discussion Forum, Global Nose-Pickers Support Group, etc.), just as a person who can’t get a Visa card might start out with a JC Penney card or a Wellcom card and try to work up to higher-level organizations.
Obviously tragic that Asean can afford to exclude Taiwan from such a meeting. However I am sure that the people in the affected areas will much appreciate any help from anyone in Taiwan. Organizations and accounts to donate are listed in all papers, in addition if you do not trust those organisations, the British Chamber set up one as well.
British Chamber of Commerce in Taipei
1226 Tsunami Relief Fund
Chinese Name:
台北市
Actually, the exclusion of Taiwan from ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) has nothing to do with China’s stupid games; it’s due to the fact that Taiwan is not in Southeast Asia. China is not a member either. Nor are Japan or Korea.
The members of ASEAN include Myanmar, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei Darussalam, Singapore and Indonesia. Papua New Guinea has observer status.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ASEAN#Members
Is Taiwan’s request to participate in ASEAN any different from if it asked to take part in an EU meeting? Should Taiwan have a right to participate in EU meetings?
After the 9/28 eatherquake in Taiwan, the world saw how Taiwan handles a “relief effort.” The ASEAN made the correct decision by not allowing Taiwan to participate. I can’t even begin to imagine the chaos and destruction a group of Taiwanese experts could bring upon the suffering people in those countries right now.
You suck as a troll. Try harder.
I remember the shock of international aid groups who came to Taiwan only to see the Taiwanese driving earth moving equipment on top buildings that had collapsed in the 9/28 earthquake. It seems the Taiwanese rescuers never thought that putting heavy machinery on top of collapsed buildings might further injure people buried below. I’m sure you also remember, the hotel/bank that crumbled because a fungshui expert recommended that several important support columns be removed to improve the flow of chi.
So now I’m a troll because I point out that the Taiwanese might not be the best and brightest when it comes to rescue or construction? Umm… ok… I’ll play along.
Not to mention the LTH infamous incident of his helicopter inadvertantly killing a little girl during a presidential visit to 9/28 site.
I don’t see how ASEAN membership would be better than the current WTO membership. However, there are talks of a ASEAN-China Free Trade Area, which might put ROC at the disadvantage with ASEAN members.
It’s a good thing China wasn’t invited to assist with the ASEAN relief efforts, too. Recall how they bungled the Tianamen square protests. How many innocent students killed due to the government’s efforts?
But I thought Taiwan was part of China? 
Wow, it seems that ac_dropout and pres_dabien know an awful lot about the ‘9/28’ earthquake. 
Brian