PINGTUNG (Taiwan News) — Members of Taiwan’s Presbyterian Church gathered in southern Taiwan on Saturday (Aug. 12) to discuss improving the resilience of their communities based on one core idea: community-based civil defense.
The members gathered at the Tavadran Presbyterian Church in Rinari, a Paiwan village in Pingtung at the base of the mountains that separate Taiwan’s east and west coasts. About 200 elders, ministers, and members of the Paiwan Presbytery came to hear speakers discuss how church networks can be used to prepare congregations for emergency situations.
Ljavakaw Tjaljimaraw (謝易宏) is the leader and founder of civil defense group Academia Formosana (named in reference to the scholarly life he left behind at Academia Sinica to pursue the project full time), which was launched in July. Academia Formosana’s flagship project is the Noah’s Ark Plan, that Ljavakaw hopes to roll out via the wide network of Presbyterian congregations found throughout Taiwan.
“That means organizing the 1,200 Presbyterian congregations in Taiwan into an ark, so when the flood or war comes to Taiwan, we can help ourselves and protect each other,” Ljavakaw told Taiwan News.
“The mission of Academia Formosana is to promote community-based civil defense, using our strong motivation driven by our deep love for this island. We will not let anyone destroy it, and we will defend it,” he said.
Ljavakaw Tjaljimaraw. (Taiwan News, Water Chien photo)
Response units
The Ark Plan aims to use each congregation as a basic unit for implementing disaster management, he said. Ljavakaw said this will involve practical training to ensure stability of resources, the provision of emergency healthcare, developing leadership structures, and creating plans for different disaster scenarios.
Ljavakaw presented maps showing the location of Presbyterian congregations in Pingtung in relation to local military bases, schools, police stations, and beaches, to illustrate threats posed by their surroundings. He encouraged communities to create safety plans for their congregations based on the local conditions that include possible airstrike locations, likely enemy landing spots, and where to find resources.
He asked those gathered to think about how to respond if those from outside the local community seek asylum in Indigenous villages during conflicts, and if there would be enough supplies should members of the community working in cities suddenly return to villages.
Ljavakaw also encouraged communities to consider how they would defend their villages against possible looters if supplies outside ran short. He outlined suggested measures for responding to such events, though he said Saturday's presentation was essentially a starting point for the Ark Plan, and more practical training would come later.
“I hope those pastors, elders, and deacons will first bring this idea and project back to their congregations to discuss in their decision-making body,” he said. “If they decide to join this project, then I will bring practical training and skills to each community to equip them.”
A cross stands outside Tjavatjavang Presbyterian Church, one of the many in Majia Township. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
Civil defense in Taiwan has become a popular topic recently, particularly when it involves citizens training for armed resistance. In the last two years alone, the New York Times, Reuters, AP, the BBC, Al Jazeera, ABC Australia, and others have run reports on private citizens training to shoot in Taiwan, (though it is worth noting that many of these reports were about the same organization).
When asked about this, Ljavakaw said Academia Formosana's plans are not about weapons, but “purely civil defense. It’s about how to prepare yourself.”
“If a war breaks out you might face a shortage of food, water, electricity, and some people may loot your community or church, and you have to prepare for that. It’s about the coherent organization of your community, not about weapons or guns,” he said.
Community
The Presbyterian Church in Taiwan has a history of nearly 160 years, enduring through Japanese colonial rule, and the authoritarian period under the Kuomintang. Today, the church has a self-reported membership of just under 260,000 made up of over 1,200 congregations, of which approximately 500 are led by Indigenous Taiwanese.
“The church, especially the Presbyterian Church, is a very important community on this island,” Ljavakaw said. “That’s why I started (civil defense preparations) with Presbyterian congregations; because they are very strong communities by nature, especially in Indigenous societies,” he said.
Ljavakaw frequently returned to the idea of strength through community in his presentation, and said this was illustrated by Corinthians 12: 25-27, that reads:
"And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; or if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually."
Ljavakaw said each congregation has its own decision-making body, and that their pastors and elders are natural leaders in their communities. "We need coherent leadership that can work together to defend their own land and people,” he said.
Pastor Aravas Talalang. (Taiwan News, Water Chien photo)
Pastor Aravas Talalang (李耀光) leads the Tavadran Presbyterian Church, and said that thinking about the defense of his people is not new. He said even though media reports have given people the sense of increased cross-strait tensions, defending the community has always been in the front of their minds.
The pastor referenced oppression experienced by Indigenous communities at the hands of Taiwan’s government in the past, and said Paiwan people have spilled blood in pursuit of freedom and democracy, so he wants his people to be prepared. We want to train our brothers and sisters how to protect their lives and help themselves, Aravas said.
He said that helping all Taiwanese people, or even all Presbyterian congregations prepare for crises is out of his reach, but added that roughly a third of Paiwan people are members of the Presbyterian Church. If the Presbyterian Church is well trained, that means that a third of people can influence the remaining members of the community to prepare, Aravas said.
“This kind of force is something I am hoping for.”
Party politics
During the discussion, General Secretary of the Paiwan Presbytery Ljegean Tudalimaw (樂歌安督達里茂) asked Ljavakaw if the outcome of Taiwan’s presidential election in January 2024 will change the likelihood of conflict in Taiwan. Ljavakaw said that like a typhoon, war is unrelated to who holds the presidency, and that current trends indicate that eventually, war will break out regardless of who leads the country.
Speaking after the presentation, Ljavakaw said his response was not an attempt to be apolitical or non-partisan, but reflected his belief that it is unrealistic to regard politicians as idols who can prevent war. “I said that in God’s church, I didn’t want to commit idolatry,” he said.
"I am both political and partisan - very. I do have a clear political view, and I disdain to conceal it, and I do have a partisan stand: I am not satisfied with the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), and despise other much worse parties," Ljavakaw said.
Rinari Village in Pingtung's Majia Township. (Taiwan News, Jono Thomson photo)
He said he believes he was asked the question because “anti-DPP forces are framing the election as a false dichotomy: that voting for Lai Ching-te (賴清德) will induce the outbreak of war and voting for others will lead to peace. The Indigenous pastors are pro-DPP and are troubled by this propaganda.”
“But this idea is farcical, because if the majority of Taiwanese voters choose any of the non-DDP candidates, Taiwan has to face dishonor first and then war,” he said. “I know the pastors anticipated my answer, and could help refute the rumors, by saying that voting for Lai will not lead to war.”
“But it’s not true,” Ljavakaw said. “As I said and believe, war is going to happen no matter who is elected, because war is a result of systematic changes and disturbances.”
