Taiwán

Taiwan is formed by one large and several small islands off the coast of China. From the 16th through the 19th century, it was part of China, and from 1895 through 1945 it was a colony of Japan called Formosa. It reverted to China after World War II. Following the communist victory on mainland China in 1949, some two million Nationalist Party Chinese fled to Taiwan and declared a government for all of China based on the constitution of 1946. Since then, the dominant issue is the relationship between Taiwan and mainland China. There is a political movement in favour of independence. In 2000, Taiwan underwent its first peaceful transfer of power from the Nationalist to the Democratic Progressive Party.

Taiwan has become one of the leading economies of Asia, and economic and cultural relationships with the mainland are growing rapidly. Christianity came to the island in the 17th century but only developed significantly in the 19th and 20th centuries. Taiwan has an indigenous population which is heavily Christian. Besides the Catholic Church and the Presbyterian Church, other large churches are the Little Flock (Evangelical) and the True Jesus Church (Pentecostal). In recent years, other Pentecostal and Charismatic groups have established themselves. The Catholic Church is a member of the national council of churches.