Taiwan is set to distribute millions of civil defence handbooks to households across the island this week, Reuters reports, in an unprecedented effort to prepare residents for a wide range of emergencies, including the threat of a Chinese invasion. The handbook, first unveiled in September, contains instructions on what citizens should do if they encounter enemy soldiers and emphasizes that any claims of Taiwan’s surrender should be treated as false. It also provides guidance on locating bomb shelters and assembling emergency kits.
This initiative represents Taiwan’s latest effort to bolster civilian preparedness in response to rising military and political pressure from Beijing, which claims the democratically governed island as its territory. Lin Fei-fan, Deputy Secretary-General of Taiwan’s National Security Council, who oversaw the handbook’s creation, said the publication demonstrates the island’s determination to defend itself. “We need people across the Taiwan Strait to understand that there will be a huge cost if China makes the wrong decision because Taiwanese people have the resolve and very clear commitment in defending ourselves,” Lin said.
The distribution will reach more than 9.8 million mailboxes, with handbooks in English and other foreign languages planned for release soon. Following the distribution, the government intends to assist citizens in preparing personal emergency kits through promotional campaigns, although specific details have not yet been disclosed.
China has not ruled out the use of force to assert its claim over Taiwan, while the Taiwanese government maintains that only its people can decide their future. The handbook outlines potential scenarios the island may face, ranging from cyberattacks and sabotage of undersea cables to inspections of Taiwanese vessels by a hostile power and even an all-out invasion. Lin noted that Taiwan is already confronting a form of hybrid warfare from China, including cyberattacks, misinformation campaigns, infiltration, and military incursions near its territory. “It is D-day versus everyday. D-day means actually invasion. Obviously we are not in the D-day mode. But we are facing the so-called everyday coercion,” he said.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
