Hong Kong authorities have banned vigils for victims since 2020, initially citing the COVID-19 pandemic.
BEIJING, China — Chinese authorities are erasing any memory of the military crackdown on student-led pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989 37 years ago Thursday, further intensifying a yearlong campaign to erase what happened from public memory.
Police have told relatives of victims that they will not be allowed to visit cemeteries in Beijing on the anniversary of the crackdown, a person familiar with the matter said. The person spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of retaliation.
Amnesty International said that for more than three decades, relatives of victims have visited the cemetery to read eulogies on anniversaries, with police standing guard. They belong to an organization called “Tiananmen Mothers.”
In 1989, hundreds, possibly thousands, were killed when troops broke through crowds trying to prevent troops from approaching protesters in Tiananmen Square, a vast square in the center of the Chinese capital. The Communist Party leadership’s decision to send in the military was a critical moment in China’s modern history, determining that the market reforms that transformed China into the world’s second-largest economy would not coincide with political liberalization.
Rubio says censorship cannot erase the past
In Hong Kong, police on Thursday stepped up security to prevent any kind of commemoration in or near parks, where a massive candlelight vigil was held every anniversary night until a crackdown in 2019 following major anti-government protests. On Wednesday, they blocked two performance artists from making symbolic gestures at separate events. One of them briefly held up a question mark-shaped balloon outside the department store.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who recently accompanied President Donald Trump on his state visit to Beijing, issued a statement to mark the anniversary. “No amount of censorship can erase the past,” it said. “Those who have sacrificed to uphold the inalienable rights of free speech and peaceful assembly will one day be vindicated.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning dismissed the US move as a smear campaign against China’s political system. “We urge the United States… to stop using so-called democracy and human rights as an excuse to interfere in China’s internal affairs,” she said.
Tiananmen mother calls crackdown a crime
The Tiananmen Mothers launch their annual appeal for justice ahead of this year’s anniversary. The statement, signed by 107 people, calls for full disclosure of the truth of the incident, compensation for the victims and their families, and legal accountability for those responsible.
“The sacrifice of our family members is an indelible pain in our hearts. Our tears have dried up and the grief has been buried deep in our hearts. What is left is the eternal memory of the family and the hatred for the crime of massacre of the people,” Zhang Xianling, a member of the group, said in a video message posted on Facebook. Facebook is blocked in China.
Amnesty International said it was deeply troubling that China’s crackdown on commemorations appeared to be escalating. “The Chinese authorities are callous in banning relatives of those killed in the Tiananmen Square crackdown from visiting their graves,” Sarah Brooks, the organization’s deputy Asia director, said in a statement.
The Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau did not respond to a faxed request for comment.
Hong Kong bans annual vigil
Hong Kong authorities have banned vigils since 2020, initially citing the COVID-19 pandemic. Past participant Simon Ng took a walk in the nearby Causeway Bay shopping district to mark the anniversary. “There are things I can’t forget and I can’t let go, so I have to take a walk,” he said.
Three organizers of the vigil have been charged under the 2020 national security law. A person pleads guilty, which could result in a lighter sentence. the other two Already tried and is awaiting sentencing.
One of the lawyers, Zhou Hengdong, said in an online post last weekend that she would go on a 37-hour hunger strike in prison. “Behind the glow of power and dictatorship lie the blood and shattered dreams of ordinary people. For amnesia means the death of democracy,” she wrote.
Former district councilor Derek Chu said on Instagram that he visited Ms Chow on Thursday and told her he would also stop eating for 37 hours to show support. He added that a store he runs is distributing LED candles that can be used to commemorate the victims.
Leung reported from Hong Kong.
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