PUTRAJAYA, Oct 27 — Malaysia’s stance on the Pandemic Treaty of the World Health Organisation Convention Agreement (WHO CA+) and the International Health Regulations’ (IHR 2005) amendment is clear: to protect public health interests and the country’s sovereignty.
Health Director-General Datuk Dr Muhammad Radzi Abu Hassan said the WHO CA+ and IHR 2005 negotiation process was not limited to public health, as it also covered other related fields like trade, environment, geopolitics, and socio-economics.
Therefore, the Ministry of Health (MOH), as the coordinator of the two negotiations, held engagement sessions with various relevant ministries and government agencies, including the Attorney-General’s Chambers, to ensure Malaysia’s sovereignty and laws were preserved, and Malaysians’ interests were protected and prioritised.
In a statement today, he said Malaysia’s participation in the negotiations reflected the country’s commitment to strengthening global health security and future epidemic prevention.
“Malaysia’s basic principles, including sovereignty and autonomy, justice and solidarity, equality, the need to build a sustainable health care system, as well as public awareness and transparency are the basis of every negotiation,” Dr Radzi said, adding those principles are also supported by other WHO member countries.
The final decision will only be issued once all member countries reach a consensus in the negotiations.
So far, negotiations involving delegations from WHO member countries, including Malaysia, have been done systematically and comprehensively, providing an opportunity for each country to voice their views and stances.
— Bernama
