00                      HOUSE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 50                                                                     
01 Supporting the participation of Taiwan in the annual summit of the World Health                                         
02 Assembly.                                                                                                               
03 BE IT RESOLVED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF ALASKA:                                                               
04       WHEREAS direct and unobstructed participation in international health cooperation                               
05 forums and programs is crucial for all parts of the world, especially with today's greater                              
06 potential for the cross-border spread of various infectious diseases such as AIDS; and                                  
07       WHEREAS Taiwan's achievements in the field of health are substantial, including                                 
08 one of the highest life expectancy levels in Asia, maternal and infant mortality rates                                  
09 comparable to those of western countries, the eradication of the infectious diseases of cholera,                        
10 smallpox, and the plague, and being the first to be rid of polio and to provide children with                           
11 free hepatitis B vaccinations; and                                                                                      
12       WHEREAS the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and its                                    
13 Taiwanese counterpart have enjoyed close collaboration on a wide range of public health                                 
14 issues; and                                                                                                             
15       WHEREAS in recent years the Republic of China (Taiwan) has expressed a                                          

01 willingness to assist financially and technically the international aid and health activities                           
02 supported by the World Health Organization (WHO); and                                                                   
03       WHEREAS Taiwan's population of 23,000,000 is larger than that of 75 percent of the                              
04 WHO member states; and                                                                                                  
05       WHEREAS the United States, in the 1994 Taiwan Policy review, declared its                                       
06 intention to support Taiwan's participation in appropriate international organizations; and                             
07       WHEREAS Taiwan's participation in the WHO could bring many benefits to the state                                
08 of health not only in Taiwan but also regionally and globally;                                                          
09       BE IT RESOLVED that the Alaska State Legislature expresses its belief that the                                  
10 Republic of China (Taiwan) should be permitted to participate in a meaningful and                                       
11 appropriate way in the World Health Organization annual conference in May 2002.                                         
12       COPIES of this resolution shall be sent to the Honorable George W. Bush, President                              
13 of the United States; the Honorable Colin Powell, United States Secretary of State; the                                 
14 Honorable Tommy Thompson, United States Secretary of Health and Human Services; the                                     
15 World Health Assembly; the World Health Organization; Jack K. C. Chiang, Director                                       
16 General, Taipei Economic and Cultural Office; and to the Honorable Ted Stevens and the                                  
17 Honorable Frank Murkowski, U.S. Senators, and the Honorable Don Young, U.S.                                             
18 Representative, members of the Alaska delegation in Congress.