Watchdog Praises New Report Findings on Taxpayer-Funded Global Bureaucracies

For Immediate Release
June 10, 2020
Contact: Grace Morgan
(202-855-4380)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Taxpayers Protection Alliance (TPA) praised the Republican Study Committee (RSC) for releasing a report on “Strengthening America & Countering Global Threats.” In the report, the RSC expressed its support for practical measures to address the problems plaguing taxpayer-funded international agencies, including global bureaucracies regularly acting against U.S. interests.

The report specifically notes how, “China silenced doctors and journalists who spoke out and pressured international organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) to defend the country’s pandemic response and even disseminate Chinese government talking points.” But, as the analysis highlights, this attempt by the Chinese Communist Party to control taxpayer-funded international bureaucracies is just the tip of the iceberg. Below are some critical report findings and recommendations:

Key Report Findings

• “Chinese control of the WIPO [World Intellectual Property Organization]…could allow it to steal a great deal of U.S. intellectual property [IP] since this international organization is responsible for global technical infrastructure to connect IP systems and as a world reference source for IP information.”
• “As the Heritage Foundation’s Brett Schaefer has written, ‘one of the most sensitive activities overseen by WIPO is maintaining the confidentiality of patent applications under the Patents and Technology Sector.’”
• “China’s soft power strategy has paid dividends, including being appointed to bodies such as the United Nations (U.N.) Human Rights Council, where it possesses the ability to vet candidates for critical U.N. human rights posts.”
• “The U.N. system faces many practical problems: it has become unaccountable, corrupt, and often empowers anti-American dictatorial regimes.”

Recommendations 

• “Congress should statutorily support the President’s effort to withdraw from the WHO and redirect support to other global health initiatives.”
• “Congress should require the Department of State to issue a strategy to counter Chinese efforts to control key international standard setting bodies and other multilateral organizations.”
• “Congress should direct the Department of State Inspector General to inspect and audit the use of U.S. funds by international organizations and make a portion of U.S. contributions to international organizations contingent on cooperation.”
• Congress should end taxpayer funding for the U.N. Development Program, the Office of Disarmament Affairs, Human Settlements Program, High Commissioner for Human Rights, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, and Framework Convention on Climate Change.

TPA Executive Director Tim Andrews praised these findings, noting, “these recommendations will help protect U.S. taxpayers and are a critical first step to reforming unaccountable international bureaucracies. The U.S. must step up to the plate to hold the U.N., WHO, and other global bureaucracies accountable for mishandling the COVID-19 response effort and putting their own agendas above what is best for the world. We hope these recommendations will be used to stimulate further discussion and serve as the starting point for comprehensive reforms.”

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