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Taiwan’s bid to aid in global bird flu fight


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By John Metzler
SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM

Friday, January 20, 2006

TAIPEI, Taiwan — The alarming spread of avian flu and the very real possibility that the threat can grow into a global pandemic confronts health professionals and policymakers alike. And while people from Southeast Asia to Turkey have contacted bird flu--some fatally—the outbreaks call for immediate attention and the massive mobilization of medical resources to isolate and contain the risks.

The World Health Organization (WHO) the Geneva-based UN body has received $2 billion in emergency pledges to combat the H5N1 virus which looms literally like the plague over East Asia and parts of Eastern Europe. Dr. David Nabarro, the UN Coordinator for Avian flu warns that deaths from a pandemic could reach between “from 5 to 150 million people.” Even more “optimistic” estimates point to two million deaths from an outbreak. Fortunately the disease has not yet reached human to human transmission but is carried from infected chickens to people.

Given that Southeast Asia—especially Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and parts of China—form the epicenter of the spreading bird flu threat, it’s vitally important to establish regional “fire breaks” to identify, analyze, and eradicate outbreaks of the deadly H5N1 virus. Taiwan, the prosperous island democracy just off the China coast, forms the nexus of regional transportation routes and offers a particularly high level of sophisticated medical and infectious disease research capabilities. Nonetheless, Taiwan’s formal participation in World Health Organization activities has been barred by rival Beijing. Thus the politics of divided China could hinder medical response to a global epidemic.

Though the Republic of China was a founder of the World Health Organization, Taiwan was excluded from membership in the world body ever since People’s Republic of China gained its seat in 1971. Today Beijing unceremoniously block’s Taipei’s membership in the world health assembly since the PRC claims sovereignty over what it ominously labels as the “breakaway province of Taiwan,” even though the communists have never controlled Taiwan for a single day.

Despite the political logjam, Taiwan’s medical and technical proficiency is heralded by health professionals and cited as a key component in the wider plan to attack the H5N1 virus. Taiwan for example, has developed a generic Tamiflu pill which can be used to mitigate but not eradicate a bird flu outbreak.

According to Dr. Ming-liang Lee, an American-trained molecular biologist and a former Health Minister, “Tamiflu does not cure the virus but does shorten the time” Currently the government plans to stockpile Tamiflu for 10% of the population. In an emergency, medical officials stress that short of gaining supplies from the patent holder Roche, Taiwan can produce a generic version of the apparent anti-viral wonder drug.

Taiwan’s National Health Research Institute offers a treasure chest of biomedical and biotechnology development and has emerged as a key health research organization in East Asia.

Vietnam remains a focus for avian flu—Taiwan has donated 600,000 Tamiflu capsules to the Vietnamese and has set up a widespread cooperation on the ground to stop the flu. Such cooperation is typical. In the past decade, Taipei has offered $233 million in medical aid and humanitarian assistance to 78 countries worldwide. Taiwan maintains medical teams in Malawi, Chad, Sao Tome and the Solomon Islands to name a few.

Dr. Ming-liang Lee cautioned, “The SARS epidemic experience showed the non-transparency for cases, either to underreport intentionally or even underestimate the problem. Medical standards are poor in Mainland China and thus perhaps there are unintentional reporting errors.”

For example during the SARS outbreak in 2003, Taiwan medical sources reported the case to the WHO and requested assistance. Despite repeated requests, WHO did not respond for seven crucial weeks. To the contrary the U.S. Center for Disease Control moved with alacrity and offered vital help. Timely reporting remains vital. SARS was contained in Taiwan, but still cost the island’s economy $8 billion in damage and 76 people dead. While Dr. Lee remains “cautiously optimistic” against a major avian flu outbreak, preparations and wider information sharing remain vital.

Taiwan wishes to share its medical expertise through WHO programs but is blocked by Beijing’s political bullying. Deputy Foreign Minister Michael Kau stated that the Taipei government seeks “observer status” in the organization and has gained American, Japanese and European support. He stresses the need to avoid the “sovereignty dispute” with Beijing and thus show flexibility on the specific delegation name.

“Health is a human right,” stresses Dr. Tzay-Jinn Chen Taiwan’s Deputy Health Minister.

One wonders if Beijing sees it that way?


John J. Metzler is a U.N. correspondent covering diplomatic and defense issues. He writes weekly for World Tribune.com.