Taiwan Church News 3270 Edition October 27 - November 2, 2014 Headline News PromotingGrass Root Civil Rights Movement, PCT Holds Training Camp To Learn What Is Love And Non-Violence During Protest Reported by Simon Lin From October 24 to 26, a group of 60 people, mainly young students, gathered at the Lebanon Resort at Ta-ken, Taichung, attending the PCT training camp, named as "Grass Root Civil Rights Movement - Training Camp ForLove And Non-violence During Protest". This event is organized by PCT Church and Society Committee to promote the non-violence methods within demonstrations, which became more and more blossoming across Taiwan island, especially after Taipei's Sunflower Student Movement in March, 2014. Prof Hwang Kuo-chang, a renowned leader in Sunflower Student Movement, and many civil rights activitista were invited to share their thoughts and experiences to the audience. Rev. Cheng Kuo-chung, pastor of Taipei Just Action Church, introduces the Urban Rural Mission(URM) to the participating members. He points out URM, as a mission for liberation and justice, was brought into Taiwan in 1982 by Prof Albert Lin and strongly supported by PCT, having already trained 1200 members as the grass root social reform activists across Taiwan. These URM graduates came from all walks of life and even from different religions. They played the critical power when Taiwan society transformed herself from an authoritarian dictatorship into a new-born liberal democracy. Using love and justice as principles, upholding non-violence as the methods, URM demonstrates the people power through organization the oppressed to reclaim the human rights and restore the dignity God once bestowed. Huang Kuo-chang, Associate Research Professor of Institutum Iurisprudentiae, Academia Sinica, stresses that the real dominating power of current Taiwan politics are the Chinese communist regime and the privileged conglomerate shuttling between the Taiwan Straits. It is most strikingly evidenced from the scarce Taiwan's coverage of HK occupy central movement, as the most accessible Taiwan cable media, which accounts for 95% of news channels, refrain from reporting HK's umbrella movement at the very beginning. Further, there is few Taiwan cable television station dare to criticize the Chinese communist regime, which is the most threatening force against Taiwan democracy. Therefore, when all the situations of Taiwan become more and more disadvantageous, the youth in their twenties or thirties should be awaken to care about the politics, because they are the mainstream of future society. Prof Tsay Ting-kuei and Rev. Wang Rong-yi, utilizing the idea of the Open Space Technology(OST), jointly host the seminar to discuss many important social issues: indigenous education, land justice, consolidating Taiwan consciousness, how to boost up the influence of civil rights organizations and etc. And elder Tsai Ming-hsien, former Defense Minister, help the audience to understand what is the crisis and opportunity of Taiwan from diplomatic, military and economical dimension. Quoting the verse of James 2:26, " so faith without deeds is dead", Rev. Wang Jin-tsai, Director of PCT Church and Society Committee, urges the participating members in the close session service: to act through our limited life, unite with the public with the same hearts, and learn fearlessly the spirit of love and non-violence from Lord Jesus to fight against the oppression, then we can realize the kingdom of God on the earth as it is on the heaven. Even a lot of challenges lying ahead, we could still strive to build a new and independent country with a positively creative mind! Translated by Peter Wolfe |