Mr. Speaker, in response to a question I asked on March 12 about Taiwan's request for observer status at the World Health Organization, the Minister of Foreign Affairs informed me that the bylaws of this international organization did not permit such status to be granted.
If Niue and the Cook Islands, which have respective populations of fewer than 2,000 and 20,000 inhabitants and which are not independent states, if the Order of Malta, Vatican City, the Palestinian Liberation Organization, the International Federation of the Red Cross and the Red Crescent Societies can all have observer status at the WHO, why, according to the minister, should Taiwan continue to be denied this status?