wfn.org | 600,000 Protesters Attend Taiwan Church October 25 Rally

[Worldwide Faith News <wfn@igc.org>]

> Taiwan Church News

> 2957 Edition

> October 27~November 2, 2008

Six Hundred Thousand Protesters Attend October 25 Rally

> Reported by: Chiou Kuo-rong and Lin Yi-ying

> Written by: Lydia Ma

Members from the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan were among the 
six-hundred thousand protesters who attended the October 25 rally. 
They chanted "victory for Taiwan!" as they marched along with other 
protesters. Their cries must have touched the heart of fellow 
protesters because many of them waved their Taiwan flags or gave a 
thumbs-up sign in return. One person told the group representing the 
PCT, "When I see you stand up for this country, I believe there is 
still hope for Taiwan."

Members from the PCT who participated in the rally came from 
different churches. They were encouraged by the general assembly to 
attend. They marched with the crowd beginning at the front gates of 
National Taiwan University and marched along Roosevelt Boulevard and 
then Ketagalan Boulevard. This route was roughly 3.5 kilometers long 
and belonged to the "Anti-China Education" group. The PCT group began 
marching at 3:30 p.m. and marched for 90 minutes. However, due to 
massive congestion they stopped 700 meters short from Ketagalan road. 
Seeing that they could no longer proceed, the group leaders and PCT 
moderator Asing Aman dismissed the PCT group after a word of prayer, 
thus concluding PCT's formal participation in the rally on that day.

The Crowd Supports PCT Participation at the Rally

The PCT team received a lot of encouragement from fellow protestors. 
Many protest groups and by-passers that went ahead of the PCT team 
applauded at the sight of the PCT banner and members wearing protest 
signs. One protester from Taiwan Teachers' Alliance observed that 
seeing people speaking up on behalf of religious organizations is a 
sign of democratic progress. He shared that the PCT is an important 
and admirable leader in Taiwanese democracy because it began speaking 
up and organizing protests when Taiwan was not a democracy yet. 
Democracy seems to have taken huge steps backward under the Ma 
administration, therefore, religious organizations must stand in 
solidarity with the people and experience their pain if the latter 
seek to be important actors influencing society.

One protestor from Hsin-Chu county chanted, "Go, Pastor Kao, Go!" 
when he saw the former secretary general among the crowd of PCT 
protestors. This fellow believed that the PCT had always stayed true 
to its concern for Taiwan and pursuit of righteousness. He believed 
that as long as religious organizations care for Taiwan, there is 
still hope, regardless of whether it is a Christian organization or a 
Buddhist organization. As he watched the crowd of believers marching 
side by side with other protestors and defending Taiwan's autonomy, 
Pastor Kao Chun-ming commented that this is what the Christian spirit 
is all about. Not only do Christians need to love, we also need to 
have courage and wisdom and seek justice.

With regards to former president Chen Shui-bian's participation at 
the rally, Pastor Kao only underlined that every person has the right 
and freedom to show love for Taiwan through different means. He 
called upon the legislature to pass the "Sunshine Laws" as soon as 
possible so that all civil servants, regardless of political party 
affiliation, can receive a fair and impartial trial.

Concern for Taiwan's Future Based on Religious Convictions

Pastor Kao also addressed the concern of some people within the PCT 
who thought the church was too involved in politics. He said, 
"Christians should be like birds with two wings. One wing is 
evangelism and the other wing is social concern. We should not only 
love God, but also love our neighbors. This is what makes love 
complete: Loving God and people with all our heart, soul, and mind"

Secretary General of the PCT, Andrew Chang also stated that there is 
no contradiction between separation of church and state and 
patriotism. He said, "If the church does not love Taiwan, how can it 
evangelize to the Taiwanese people? A new and independent country is 
in line with the Presbyterian statement of faith. If Taiwan does not 
become independent, it will very likely become a province of China. 
Should this happen, churches will lose religious freedom altogether 
and it will be too late to save it."

Andrew Chang believes that it is important to continue trying to 
communicate with the Ma administration. However, seeing how far 
President Ma has strayed from his campaign promises and the about 
face he made before and after the presidential election, Chang 
stressed that churches should first pray for the president to hear 
the people, who are crying out that Taiwanese people want to be themselves.

On the day before the rally, Democratic Progressive Party's 
chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen had paid a visited the PCT headquarters to 
thank the PCT for its participation. During their meeting, Andrew 
Chang expressed that Ma Ying-jeou had not heeded the people's voices 
in the five months that he had been in office. Furthermore, his 
China-leaning policies only increased the level of anxiety among the 
populace. Chang added that the PCT's participation in the rally is 
mainly a gesture of solidarity with the people. We must let President 
Ma and China know that Taiwan is not part of China. At the meeting, 
Chang offered a prayer of blessing over Tsai and also prayed that God 
would open President Ma's eyes to see the people's needs and truly love Taiwan.

> Many Ethnic Groups Stand Up Against China

Many aboriginal groups also participated in the rally, including 
leaders from aboriginal presbyteries all across Taiwan. They came on 
behalf of the aboriginal people and went up to the stage set up at 
Ketagalan road where they deflated balloons representing Chinese 
diplomas and Chinese flags.

PCT associate general secretary Rev. Kho Sing-Doh stood next to DPP's 
chairwoman Tsai Ing-wen. He pointed out that just as trees without 
roots cannot produce green leaves, a people without much past history 
cannot generate meaningful visions for the future. This event is an 
important point in Taiwanese history because so many had come forward 
to fight for a country based on faith, hope, and love. Rev. Kho 
invited the crowd gathered there to raise their right hand and pray 
for God to watch over Taiwan so that it may truly become a new and 
independent country.

At the conclusion of the rally, PCT moderator Asing Aman led all PCT 
pastors in the following prayer, "Father God, please lead us so that 
we may continue fighting for this land. May this land truly become a 
new and independent country one day where all its inhabitants enjoy 
harmony, freedom and peace!"