Tainan: Taiwanese activists promoting civil defense awareness and national unity amidst the looming threat of China's invasion embarked on a third-day relay march from Tainan to Taipei on Monday. The nine-day event, organized by the Kuma Civil Defense Education Association, aims to spread awareness and reinforce Taiwan's sovereignty. According to Focus Taiwan, the march, themed "Prepare for civil defense, protect Taiwan!" features activists traversing the Tainan-Yunlin section. The Kuma Civil Defense Education Association, co-founded by Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmaker Puma Shen, orchestrated this initiative to garner support from civil organizations and individuals. A Tainan native, identified by the surname Hou, expressed hope that this northward journey would amplify the voices advocating for Taiwanese independence and sovereignty. The march, named "Stand Up as Taiwan," involves more than 50 activist groups participating in stages to cover a distance of approximately 380 kilometers across 13 c ities and counties. The route primarily follows Provincial Highway 1, utilizing train stations as relay points from Kaohsiung in the south to Taipei in the north. The organizers anticipate around 1,000 participants to gather at the event's final destination, Huashan 1914 Creative Park in Taipei, on Sunday. The Kuma Civil Defense Education Association, also known as the "Black Bear Academy" or Kuma Academy, was established in 2021 with a mission to prepare civilians with a pre-war mentality and cultivate self-defense capabilities. The organization has been critical of Beijing, which has in recent years conducted large-scale military exercises signaling potential action against Taiwan. In October, China's Taiwan Affairs Office labeled the NGO as part of the "die-hard Taiwan independence separatists" list. Both co-founder Puma Shen and financier Robert Tsao have been targeted by China, labeled as separatists, a designation that carries severe penalties under Chinese law. Despite these threats, the group's effo rts continue to emphasize the importance of civil defense and the assertion of Taiwan as a sovereign and independent nation.