April 20, 2003

The Rev. Sakinu, a member of the Paiwan Tribe and moderator of the East Paiwan Presbytery of the Presbyterian Church in Taiwan (PCT) filed suit against Taiwan's government over land rights issues. Sakinu says that land titles are unclear in aboriginal areas. The greatest threat comes not from one's neighbor, but from the central government, which has a history of appropriating Aboriginal lands for its own political and infrastructure purposes.

Recent new regulations about forestry management have infringed on longstanding aboriginal land use patterns. The district court in Taitung, where the case was heard, threw it out, but Sakinu vows to continue to press the cause. He aims to force the government to recognize the Aboriginal claims and grant clear title to people who have lived on and worked these lands for generations.

Land rights are not the only threat to Aboriginal livelihood and church stability in the regions. Population out-migration and "sheep stealing" by evangelical groups who have entered mission work in the area threaten the continuing viability of Aboriginal congregations in the PCT. The lack of comity agreements results in church groups more "lively" or "attractive" than the PCT coming into villages and drawing away members.

Resentments build when village residents leave the local Presbyterian church to attend services of a newly arrived group. In one case an offended pastor said to some members who were sampling the competition, "If you go there, you can never return to be a Presbyterian!"

Sakinu calls for more help from the General Assembly of the PCT, especially when a local church is without a resident minister or when a minister is drawing near to retirement. Breaks in continuity of pastoral care for a village church can result in crippling outflows of members.

Taiwan Church News
Reported by Li Hsin-ren. Translated and rewritten by David Alexander