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10

3

The Nikko Conference in Japan and
Mr. Khádem's Second Visit to Taiwan


      In November 1955 after the first Asian Teaching Conference in Nikko, Japan (usually called the Nikko Conference), Hand of the Cause Mr. Khádem, who represented the Guardian at the conference, paid a second visit to Taiwan, this time with his wife and a friend of theirs, Miss T. Haddad.

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      The Nikko Conference, Nikko, Japan, 1955. It was the first International Teaching Conference in Asia. There were representatives from Japan, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Macau, Korea, Guam and the United States. Hand of the Cause Mr. Khádem, who was the Guardian's representative, is standing behind Mr. Fujita, who is holding the frame containing the "Greatest Name". Mr. and Mrs. Suleimani are standing together a little to the left; she is wearing a white dress. Hand of the Cause Miss Alexander is holding a picture of 'Abdu'l-Bahá. Mr. Harry Yim the only native-born Chinese able to attend the conference, is standing at the middle rear, between two women. Mr. Anthony Seto, the first Chinese-American Bahá'í and a pioneer to Hong Kong, is standing in the back row fourth from the right.

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      Mr. Suleimani wrote that Mr. Khádem's four-day visit provided the greatest teaching opportunity for the Taiwan Bahá'ís thus far and that every day was busy. Together with Mr. Jerome Chu and Mr. Pai Chung-cheng they visited Mr. Wong Ho-len's house in Tsoying and had a delicious Chinese style lunch. Mr. Wong had become a Bahá'í during Mr. Khádem's first visit in 1953. This time Mr. Khádem's visit coincided with the celebration of the Birthday of Bahá'u'lláh. Seventeen persons attended, with Mr. Khádem speaking about the history of the Faith and the importance of this Day.

      Mr. and Mrs. Suleimani had also attended the Nikko Conference representing Taiwan. Unfortunately no Chinese Bahá'ís from Taiwan were able to attend. However, Mr. Harry Yim went from Macau, the only Chinese Bahá'í to go. The Suleimanis brought with them a gift for the Japanese Bahá'ís: a lovely scroll painted in the Chinese style by Mr. Pai Chung-cheng. Soon after the Suleimanis returned to Taiwan they had another declaration, Mr. Luk Yun-shen (Winston), whom Mr. Suleimani described as being a native of Canton.



      Mr. Suleimani is showing Mr. Yim from Macau a scroll painted by Mr. Pai Chung-cheng of Tainan, Taiwan. The scroll was a gift from Mr. Pai to the Bahá'ís of Japan.
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      Celebration of the anniversary of the Birthday of Bahá'u'lláh, 1955. Mr. Khádem is sitting at the end on the right. Mr. Suleimani is standing at the end behind Mrs. Ruthy Tu.

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      The Tainan friends say goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Khádem, standing second and third from the left, and Miss Haddad kneeling in front of them. This photo was taken at the Tainan Railway Station.

14

4

The First Local Spiritual Assembly in Taiwan


      The first Local Spiritual Assembly in Taiwan was elected in Tainan in 1956. Consequently, that Assembly could send a delegate to the first National Convention of the Bahá'ís of North East Asia to be held the following year. There were ten Bahá'ís in Tainan at that time.

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      The first Local Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Tainan, Taiwan, April 21, 1956. Nine of the ten Bahá'ís shown in the photo constituted the first Local Spiritual Assembly in Tainan. As nearly as we can deduce the following identification is correct.

      Seated: Mr. Wang Chi-chang, Mrs. Suleimani, Mr. Pai Chung-chen, Mrs. Ruthy Tu, Mr. Tsao Li-shih. Standing. Dr. Ni Jun-chung (ching), Mr. Suleimani, Mr. Chu, Mr. Winston Luk, Mr. Ho Chung-tzu.

      We knew there must be a reason for submitting a photo of the Local Spiritual Assembly with ten people instead of nine.

      We discovered that as there were ten Bahá'ís in the community they held an election but could not break the tie among all ten. However, they had been asked to submit a photo to the American Bahá'í News of their Local Spiritual Assembly as it was one which would participate in the election of the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of North East Asia the following year.

      They finally wrote to the Asia Teaching Committee of the United States about the problem. That committee suggested that they draw ten slips of paper; one being blank. Mr. Suleimani drew the blank slip, but by the next year Dr. Ni was off and the other nine were elected.
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      The community elected Mrs. Ruthy Tu (Tu Guan-chiao) as their delegate to the convention in 1957; however, she wasn't able to attend. Mrs. Tu had the distinction of being the first woman in Taiwan to accept the Faith (1955). She originally came from mainland China. According to Miss Alexander, Mrs. Tu was one of the first women pilots in China.

      Mrs. Tu died in 1969. When Mr. Suleimani visited her in the hospital he wrote that she was very weak but "still perfect in spirit and mind." About twenty years later her daughter accepted the Faith.

16

5

A Letter Written on Behalf of the Guardian


      This is the only letter we know of which was written by the Guardian, or on his behalf, to the Bahá'ís of Taiwan, although when Mr. Chu lived in the United States in the 1940s he received a letter from the Guardian.

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17

6

The First Teaching Conference in Taiwan


      In November 1956 the first Teaching Conference was held, in Tainan. Attendants numbered nineteen and represented five localities. Miss Agnes Alexander attended from Japan and stayed for three weeks. She was happy to see the Suleimanis again as she had first known them in China in 1923 when she went there with Martha Root. She wrote that every day and night of her visit to Taiwan was blessed to the last moment. At that time she was an Auxiliary Board Member of the Hands of the Cause in Asia. At the conference she told of the introduction of the Faith in China in which Miss Martha Root played a principal role. Miss Alexander wrote later that the friends in Taiwan with the exception of one Taiwanese, were all originally from mainland China. At that time Taiwan was under martial law but the Bahá'ís could have meetings in their rooms.

      Miss Alexander visited Taiwan three times. The second visit was in 1958 and the third in 1962. The latter two times her visits were as a Hand of the Cause.

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      The first All-Taiwan Teaching Conference, held in Tainan, November 11 and 12, 1956. Miss Alexander (center), who at that time was an Auxiliary Board Member, attended from Japan. It was her first trip to Taiwan. She stayed for three weeks to help with the teaching.

18

7

The First National Convention
of the Bahá'ís of North East Asia, 1957


      By direction of Shoghi Effendi, the Guardian of the Bahá'í Faith, in 1957 the National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of North East Asia was elected. In his message to the first convention he wrote, "With feelings of exultation, joy, and pride I hail the convocation of this history-making Convention of the Bahá'ís of North East Asia, paving the way for the emergence of a Regional Spiritual Assembly with an area of jurisdiction embracing Japan, Korea, Formosa, Macao, Hong Kong, Hainan Island and Sakhalin Island.

      "This auspicious event, which posterity will regard as the culmination of a process initiated, half a century ago, in the capital city of Japan ... marks the opening of the second chapter in the history of the evolution of His Faith in the North Pacific area. Such a consummation cannot fail to lend a tremendous impetus to its onward march in the entire Pacific Ocean..."

      The names of Sakhalin Island and Hainan Island were dropped from the jurisdiction of the National Assembly as it was not possible to travel or teach in those places. However, both remained goals of the National Assembly to open to the Faith. In 1959 Mr. John Chang, a resident of Macau, went to Hainan for two weeks, thereby becoming a Knight of Bahá'u'lláh for opening that area. Sakhalin was opened in 1990.

      A letter written on behalf of the Guardian shortly before the Convention stated, "The Guardian is looking forward with keen anticipation to the forthcoming Ridván period, as it marks the establishment of thirteen new National Assemblies; the most important of which are in the Pacific area..."

      Mrs. Ruthy Tu had been elected as a delegate from Tainan to the convention but unfortunately she was unable to attend. As Mr. and Mrs. Suleimani attended, Taiwan was represented.

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An invitation sent out by a committee of the Local Spiritual Assembly of Tainan.

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