709 



Politics and Diplomacy in the World Health Organization 



WffO'S INTENT TO BE NON-POLITICAL 



The World Health Organization has long regarded itself as a tech- 

 nical and non-political organization. Opponents of various proposals 

 and amendments, whether they won or lost on issues before the Assem- 

 bly, have based their opposition on this cherished assumption. For 

 example, in dealing with applic^itions for membership, the "Assembly 

 has been more interested in the capacity of the applicant to fulfill the 

 obligations of a ^Member than in the question of the applicant's pos- 

 sessing the attributes of sovereignty." ^® 



While the International Health Conference agreed to consider mem- 

 bership in the United Nations as a basis upon which the WHO should 

 enter into force (when 26 members of the United Nations had accepted 

 the WHO Constitution), it rejected the criterion of membership in 

 the United Nations as a standard requirement for membership in 

 WHO. Before the First Assembly met, it was decided that those non- 

 membei-s of the UN that had been invited to send observers to the 

 planning conference could become members of WHO merely by ac- 

 cepting the WHO Constitution. Questions concerning the competence 

 of the Health Assembly to determine statehood before exercising its 

 authority to admit a member were deferred to agreements between the 

 UN and WHO.^'' Although it would be a mistake to assume that ques- 

 tions of WHO membership have not been influenced by actions of the 

 United Nations, the fact remains tha;t both the Assembly and the 

 Director-General have asserted the autonomy of WHO in the deter- 

 mination of membership questions.^" Spain was dissuaded from apply- 

 ing for membership in WHO as a result of the recommendation of 

 the UN General Assembly of 1946 that that country not be admitted 

 to any international organization in the UN family. When this barrier 

 to admission was rescinded by the UN, Spain applied for membership 

 in WHO in 1951 and was admitted in that year. 



U.S. MEMBERSHIP : THE FIRST BIG TEST 



Before WHO entered into force (Sept. 1, 1948) the question of 

 United States membership came before WHO'S Interim Commission. 

 Once again, the Health Assembly asserted its competence to interpret 

 or apply the Constitution concerning membership, and powerful na- 

 tions who were already members took functional and realistic stances 

 rather than legal ones in dealing with the unusual United States case. 



The situation was that the I'.fe. instrument of acceptance, submitted 

 in June 1948, stated that U.S. acceptance of the WHO Constitution 

 was subject to certain reservations. Not only was the United States 

 the first nation to pose reservations in its application, but there was no 

 provision in the WHO Constitution for reservations to acceptance. 

 The U.S. reservations, of course, were statutory : 



The President is hereby authorized to accept membership 

 for the United States in the World Health Organization * * *. 



55 Howard B. Calderwood, "Membership in the World Health Organization" (unpublisheH 

 draft), page 3. 

 '^ Ibid., page 3. 

 o" Ibid., page 5. 



