MOFA condemns U.N. for denying Taiwanese activist at Qatar summit

Taipei, Nov. 7 (CNA) Taiwan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) has condemned the United Nations for barring a Taiwanese national from attending one of its events, saying the move "seriously violates basic human rights."

MOFA said Friday that the U.N. has long refused to allow people holding Republic of China (Taiwan) passports to visit or attend meetings within its system, a practice that infringes on Taiwanese citizens' rights to participate in international affairs.

The ministry's statement came one day after Vivi Lin (林薇), a Taiwanese period equity and gender equality activist, posted on Facebook Thursday that she had been barred from the World Summit for Social Development, held in Qatar Nov. 4-6.

Lin said she had planned to attend the event, but during the online application process, the U.N. Secretariat sent her an email asking her to "change her nationality."

She responded by protesting the request and her application to participate in the event was subsequently canceled without a formal explanation.

Lin, the founder of With Red, a non-governmental organization focused on removing the stigma surrounding menstruation and gender equality issues, later complained that the U.N. request to change her nationality was a "mission impossible."

MOFA said it has been working with allied and like-minded countries to urge the U.N. to "correct the situation," but the Secretariat has not responded positively.

The ministry said it will continue to pursue the issue and called on the U.N. to resist China's coercive pressure, uphold the principles of equal rights for all humanity as enshrined in the U.N. Charter, and promptly rectify the discriminatory treatment of ROC nationals.