Overseas Taiwanese for Democracy 海外台灣青年陣線
「海外台灣青年陣線」源於北美各地聲援太陽花運動的組織串連。青年陣線希望透過相互學習與合作，持續關心台灣群、連結國際公民社會，並培養投人社會改革、獨立建國的人才。青年陣線認為，公民意識的培養與深化是台灣成為一個更公平正義、多元包容的國家的第 一步。海外台灣青年陣線即以此自許，希望團結北美台灣青年培力公民意識、形塑台灣認同，進而 推動獨立建國的目標。
2015年會以：「跨世代台灣主體意識」為議題主軸。海台青希望能達到下列的目的：確立海台青組織架構、招攬潛在的新成員、規劃未來行動方案，探討台灣多面向的議題，包括歷史、法律、經濟、族群及性別和初步形成跨世代的台灣主體意識、促成活動參與者組織行動小組
據悉，年會的經費估計為$22,500，主辦單位預計向参與者收取＄５０左右的報名費，也正積極得向各界募款，並洽詢其他組織的贊助，以讓跨世代的台灣主體意識能夠萌芽、成長、茁壯。
詳情可聯絡全美會會長周明宏ming.chow@yahoo.com(海台青Facebook粉絲專頁:http://www.facebook.com/overseastaiwanesefordemocracy)
2014年3月，臺灣「太陽花學運」掀起青年參與公共事務的浪潮。同時，海外臺灣留學生透過串連在世界各地聲援學運，不僅引起國際社會的關注，也延續海外臺灣人推動民主化的薪火相傳。
2014年3月30日，50萬人聚集在凱達格蘭大道，世界各大城市的臺灣人也時差接力遊行，齊聲呼喚島嶼天光，這不只是運動能量迸放的高峰，更展現臺灣人追求民主自由的熱情與決心。我們承繼百年來前仆後繼反殖民的奮鬥，勇於面對島內外權貴集團反民主的威脅。臺灣的民主，雖是年輕的民主，也是經歷重重考驗、愈挫愈勇的民主。…
太陽花學運世代所抗衡的，是中國以經促統的併吞野心、是新自由主義下懸殊的貧富差距、是弱化的政府組織、是可望而不可及的社會正義。這些都是當前臺灣社會所面臨最嚴峻的挑戰。面對這些問題，唯有長於思辨與培力、勇於任事與承擔的公民社會能予以抗衡。
「海外臺灣青年陣線」源自於各地聲援太陽花學運的組織串連，奠基於追求民主自由的傳統，我們認為學運中公民關懷社會的動能，必須持續維繫與推廣。我們希望藉由持續關懷臺灣與在地社群，連結國際公民社會，推動臺灣民主憲政的深化與改革。「海外臺灣青年陣線」相信，公民意識的持續培力不輟是達成臺灣作為一個種族、性別、階級平等社會的必要途徑；而具有論述能力與責任承擔的成熟公民將會成為不可撼動的基柱，捍衛臺灣作為公義為尚、主權獨立的國家。
【核心目標】
• 建立臺灣獨立新論述，推動國家正常化，化解主權危機
• 捍衛臺灣民主，鞏固基本人權，落實公民參政，推動憲政改革
• 抵抗中共對臺灣、亞洲友邦主權、民主、自由的侵略
• 提升臺灣國際地位，連結國際公民社會
• 追求公義、多元，推動臺灣成為族群、階級、性別平等的社會
【The Overseas Taiwanese for Democracy Manifesto】
It was March 2014. Taiwanese student activists occupied the Parliament to protest the Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement (CSSTA) forced through legislative floor without proper screening. The occupation, commonly known as “The Sunflower Movement,” witnessed a new phase of civic consciousness in Taiwan. Overseas Taiwanese students, sharing the domestic sentiment, found their prompt alliance successful in captivating international coverage of the event as well as the attention of overseas Taiwanese communities. Their solidarity, spontaneous in appearance, draws from a long lineage of overseas activists who, though denied access to Taiwan, held fast to their quest for freedom and democracy.
The coalition of domestic and overseas students saw its zenith on March 30th when Taiwanese students staged numerous protest rallies at major cities around the globe, echoing the five hundred thousand demonstrators at the Ketagalan Boulevard in front of the Presidential Building in Taiwan. Together, they demanded the “withdrawal of the unlawful CSSTA.” Rather than an overnight outburst, the Sunflower Movement marked the culmination of a perennial pursuit of democracy, a centennial endeavor of anti-colonization and democratization.
The fledgling democracy in Taiwan has endured and survived many challenges. The emergence of “the Sunflower Generation” was the direct response to the most prevalent of these: the neoliberal threat posed by Beijing’s relentless attempts to annex Taiwan. Since Lehman Brothers, China has been able to capitalize on the Taiwanese government’s compromise of democratic process and social justice for the sake of economic profit. Menace of this sort, easily overlooked when the government fails to recognize the concept of “justice as fairness,” (in the words of John Rawls), can only be countered with mature and accountable civic consciousness.
Overseas Taiwanese for Democracy is an alliance of students and young professionals whose beliefs align with those of the Sunflower Movement and whose vision for Taiwan is rooted in the same determined devotion to democracy that has characterized generations of Taiwanese. Overseas Taiwanese for Democracy is dedicated to maintaining the Sunflower Movement’s momentum, calling attention to local issues, and sustaining international channels of communication between civic societies, in the hopes of perpetuating continuous reform and enhancing Taiwanese democracy. We resolve that the cultivation of civic consciousness shall lead to equal society regardless of ethnicity, gender, and class; that the emergence of a civic society shall cement the unshakable foundation of Taiwanese society; that Taiwan as a nation shall eventually ascend to sovereignty through comprehensive social justice.
