The WHO's response to COVID-19 reveals its political bias - opinion

The WHO's recent actions further expose their obvious political bias, destroy any credibility they had and give little reason for anyone to ever believe what they claim in the future.

By MATTHEW WEARP
Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus speaks during a news conference on the situation of the coronavirus (COVID-2019), in Geneva, Switzerland, February 28, 2020. (photo credit: REUTERS/DENIS BALIBOUSE)
Director General of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus speaks during a news conference on the situation of the coronavirus (COVID-2019), in Geneva, Switzerland, February 28, 2020.
(photo credit: REUTERS/DENIS BALIBOUSE)
The World Health Organization (WHO) was created by the United Nations as the directing authority for international health matters and public health. According to the WHO, their mission is to keep the world safe and serve the vulnerable, allow all peoples to attain the highest possible level of health, and promote human rights for all. 
Yet the WHO's recent actions further expose their obvious political bias, destroy any credibility they had left, permanently discredit them, and give little reason for anyone to ever believe what they claim in the future.
An organization that was created only to promote world health should not be involved in politics, but that is what we see happening and with disastrous consequences.
The WHO is facing intense criticism for its handling of China's coronavirus cover up and its close ties with China are receiving renewed scrutiny.
In January, a month after China had already begun its cover up, lied to the world about the seriousness of the issue, and allowed millions of people to leave Wuhan and travel overseas, WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus refused to take the necessary steps towards containing the virus and instead praised China's "transparency."
“We appreciate the seriousness with which China is taking this outbreak, especially the commitment from top leadership, and the transparency they have demonstrated," he said in a press release.
Next, in February, Tedros urged countries not to close their borders even though it was an obvious step towards slowing the spread of coronavirus. And despite clear evidence suggesting how devastating coronavirus would be to the world, the WHO refused to classify it as a pandemic until March 11th.
The WHO's actions toward Taiwan also reveal deep political bias and a propensity to push the Chinese Communist Party's agenda.
For years China has successfully blocked Taiwan's bid to become a member of the World Health Organization, and despite Taiwan's coronavirus response being among the best globally, the WHO continues its deference to China and is denying the world accurate and timely information on the pandemic from a small nation that is successfully combating COVID-19.
In March, Hong Kong broadcaster RTHK aired an interview with a top WHO official. The official refused to address questions about Taiwan, appeared to hang up over a question about Taiwan's coronavirus response, and instead, praised China for its response to coronavirus which we now know was severely lacking.

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This brings up valid concerns that even in a time of crisis, the organization's political views are more important than sharing vital information and doing everything possible to save lives.
The organization's political bias is also clearly shown when it comes to the State of Israel.
In its latest situation report published on April 9th, the WHO does not list Israel as a country in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, despite listing Israel's neighbors as Middle Eastern countries. Instead, they recognize the "Occupied Palestinian Territory," and list Israel as a European country.
The organization also routinely singles out Israel and condemns them for supposed human rights violations, revealing the organization's political agenda. At the annual assembly of the UN’s WHO in 2019, countries voted to pass a resolution that singled Israel out over "health conditions in the occupied Palestinian territory, including east Jerusalem, and in the occupied Syrian Golan."
According to UN Watch: "Out of 21 items on the meeting’s Agenda, only one — Item No. 14 against Israel —focused on a specific country. There was no agenda item or resolution on any other country."
It is unacceptable that the organization would accuse Israel of violations while blatantly ignoring real issues in countries like China, Syria, N. Korea, Iran, Yemen, and many others which routinely commit human rights abuses.
In 2017, an article by UN Watch revealed that the UN’s WHO hid a positive report on Israel in response to pressure from Syria’s Assad regime to hide their findings.
The WHO's continued scrutiny of Israel while turning a blind eye to countries committing outrageous violations and bowing to pressure from oppressive regimes, is just another reason for intense scrutiny on the organization's commitment to world health.
The United States, which is WHO's largest financial contributor, is now considering ending its funding to the organization after President Trump blasted their disastrous handling of the coronavirus.
“We’re going to be looking into that very carefully, and we’re going to put a hold on money sent to the WHO,” Trump said at a press conference earlier this week.
President Trump also blasted the WHO for its bias towards China, saying: “They actually criticized and disagreed with my travel ban at the time I did it, and they were wrong. They’ve been wrong about a lot of things. They had a lot of information early, and they didn’t — they seemed to be very China-centric. We have to look into it.” 
This is a good first step towards ending the World Health Organization's political bias and ensuring that it is committed to combating disease and promoting world health instead of pushing agendas that single out countries like Israel, ignore nations like Taiwan, and cover for radical communist regimes like China.
If these changes cannot be made, if an impending investigation does not result in a thorough restructuring of the organization, shutting down the World Health Organization must be considered.