Taiwan’s Viral Success Makes It Harder to Ignore
Whatever happens with the WHO, Taipei is being recognized in this fight.
Ahead of the World Health Organization.
Photographer: Walid Berrazeg/SOPA Images/Light Rocket/Getty Images
On Jan. 14, the World Health Organization sent a tweet that turned out to be one of the most significant statements in the world’s fight against the virus now known as Covid-19. Based on information from China, the global health agency wrote, the new coronavirus didn’t appear to spread via human-to-human transmission.
Two weeks earlier, health authorities in Taiwan had reached the opposite conclusion. Not only did Taiwan’s Centers for Disease Control surmise that people were passing the disease to each other, they notified the WHO of their suspicions through the UN agency’s International Health Regulations reporting window, a platform for sharing information and updates.