Tiananmen Square remembered 25 years later everywhere around the world except China
This protester, later known as “tank man”, blocks a line of tanks heading towards Tiananmen Square. The man had called for an end to the violence and bloodshed against pro-democracy demonstrators. Source: AP
Source: http://www.news.com.au/world/tiananmen-square-remembered-25-years-later-everywhere-around-the-world-except-china/story-fndir2ev-1226942451558
IT WAS the photograph that sent shock waves around the world.
A man defiantly standing in front of a line of tanks bound for Tiananmen Square became the symbol of the fight for democracy 25 years ago.
What began as a peaceful demonstration soon turned deadly when thousands of people were killed after the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) stormed the streets, opening fire on their own people.
Everyday Chinese people wanted democratic reform, but stood no chance against the military.
But what has changed since that day?
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Reagan Lee planned his escape from China 10 years before he left.
Source: SBS |
Not a lot, says Reagan Lee, a former senior physics lecturer at Peking University who was at birthplace of the Tiananmen Square’s democracy movement.
He said he believed his former country was more corrupt than ever and democracy was no closer to being achieved.
Reagan Lee planned his escape from China 10 years before he left.
Standing alongside his students, he was among those calling for a fairer, more open China in those weeks in 1989.
But he never expected to witness what he did — and he can’t forget the sound of gunshots or the fear which swept the country in the aftermath.
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Mr Lee was a senior physics lecturer at Peking University and
was among those calling for democratic reform in China. Source: SBS
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“I saw bodies on the streets,” he told news.com.au of the brutal massacre.
“It was horror. After the massacre control was tighter than ever, the government was everywhere and universities were full of spies. People were scared.”
And his message for Australians was count yourself lucky you can vote.
“Barry O’Farrell resigned over a bottle of wine — if people don’t like Tony Abbott at least he can be voted out in three years,” he said.
Mr Lee was a senior physics lecturer at Peking University and was among those calling for
Mr Lee was a senior physics lecturer at Peking University and was among those calling for democratic reform in China. Source: SBS
“People in China will never have this opportunity and no-one resigns over millions of dollars in corruption deals let alone wine.”
Mr Lee immigrated to Australia after pulling off an escape he had been planning for 10 years and was later joined by his wife and daughter.
Having been involved in the protests and as an intellectual, his movements were tightly watched and he had to carefully plot his escape.
His story and that of others involved in the massacre forms part of a unique project — After 64— launched in the first wholly in-language build for SBS online.
Marshall Heald, SBS Chief Digital Officer, said it was the first entirely bilingual interactive site which “not only harnesses sentiment 25 years on from this major international event, but also offers a rich educational resource.”
While stories such as Mr Lee’s were common, there were some things which may never be known, including the identity of “tank man”. But here’s what we do know took place.
In this May 16, 1989 file photo, medics rush a Beijing university student from Tiananmen
In this May 16, 1989 file photo, medics rush a Beijing university student from Tiananmen Square after he collapsed on the third day of a hunger strike. Source: AP
What happened?
Students and thousands of other everyday Chinese people had been calling for greater transparency and democratic reform.
Source:
The protest continued to grow with many refusing to leave the famous square — many even staged hunger strikes and the government was frightened it would lose its grip on power.
The Chinese Communist Party branded the huge protests a “counter-revolutionary rebellion” and took brutal action to repress it, firing on protesters as part of a brutal crackdown which shocked the world and left Chinese people scared for their lives.
According to Mr Lee, soldiers would fire on civilians in the aftermath and even days later in order to keep that fear alive.
Students, pictured in May 1989, rest in the litter of Tiananmen Square in Beijing as thei
Students, pictured in May 1989, rest in the litter of Tiananmen Square in Beijing as their strike for government reform enters its third week. Source: AP
Who was involved?
Students and other protesters faced off against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the People’s Liberation Army.
On May 20, 1989, the CCP imposed martial law and ordered truckloads of soldiers to Beijing to take back the square from protesters.
At first the protesters succeeded, openly telling soldiers to go home, but a humiliated government ordered the army to reassert its authority and take back control.
Soldiers fired on civilians trying to block the military’s advance towards Tiananmen Square, with most killings actually taking place on the way to the site itself.
Tiananmen Square pictured just one week after crushing the students’ pro-democracy demons
Tiananmen Square pictured just one week after crushing the students’ pro-democracy demonstrations in Beijing. Source: AP
How many people were killed?
No exact number may ever be known, with estimates ranging from hundreds to thousands.
The Chinese Government has never provided an official final toll for the military repression, which was widely condemned across the world.
But independent observers estimated more than 1000 were killed in Beijing alone.
Mr Lee said the fear people felt afterwards was astounding with many Chinese people fearful of speaking out after years of brainwashing and government control.
Chinese Paramilitary officers march in Tiananmen Square yesterday in Beijing.
Who is “tank man”?
Mystery remains surrounding the protester known as “tank man”, who courageously faced up to a tank just south of the Forbidden City on June 5. He was standing on Chang’an Avenue — a street Mr Lee refers to as the “killing fields”.
It was known that he stood in front of the tank for some time, speaking briefly with a soldier in a confrontation before being pulled away by protesters. However, his fate remains unknown.
What has changed?
The Chinese Communist Party, which ordered its troops to fire on protesters, is still in power and millions of Chinese don’t even know about the massacre.
The crackdown ended a period of relative political openness, led to the downfall of Communist Party leader Zhao Ziyang and plunged Beijing into diplomatic isolation that lasted until the late 1990s.
In the aftermath, Mr Lee said universities were infiltrated with government spies intent on cracking down on dissidents and people remained scared to speak out.
Chinese policemen prepare to close off Tiananmen Square in the run-up to the 25th anniver
What did this mean for Australia?
Many Chinese people sought sanctuary away from the troubles back home. The effects were so far reaching that then-Prime Minister Bob Hawke made a pledge that any Chinese student living in Australia would not have to return home.
Roughly 40,000 Chinese nationals, including the spouses and dependants of people who were in Australia on June 4, 1989, were able to become permanent residents of Australia in the years following the events.
A Hong Kong man walks past a billboard at the June 4th Museum dedicated to remembering th
A Hong Kong man walks past a billboard at the June 4th Museum dedicated to remembering the Tiananmen military crackdown. Source: AFP
Chinese policemen prepare to close off Tiananmen Square
in the run-up to the 25th anniversary of the 1989 crackdown. Source: AFP
How do the events affect Hong Kong today?
There is much discontent within Hong Kong, with many unhappy with the Beijing-backed government, which has been rocked by corruption scandals, sky-high housing prices and a growing wealth gap, as well as slow progress towards democracy.
The city’s leader is chosen by a pro-Beijing elite and the legislature is only partially elected.
Hong Kong holds a candlelight vigil ceremony every year to mark the massacre.
What does China say about the massacre?
Beijing has blocked all commemoration ceremonies and the official government line to this day is that protesters and violent criminals were behind the events and brutal action was necessary. The Chinese government does not talk about it and there is no mention of the events in any media.
Then and now: A June 6, 1989 file photo, top, shows cyclists passing by slogans which read
“Mobilise all citizens to crush martial law, protect Beijing,“ under a bridge where tanks are positioned leading to Tiananmen Square, and below almost 25 years later, in a May 29, 2014 photo, bottom, a jeep full of armed Chinese paramilitary policemen patrol under the same bridge. Source: AP
The ruling party prohibits public discussion and 1989 is banned from textbooks and Chinese websites.
Hong Kong and Macau, which reverted to Beijing’s rule in the late 1990s but have semi-autonomous status, and are the only places in China where the massacre is openly commemorated.
People are seen gathered at Victoria Park in
Hong Kong during a candlelight vigil held to mark the 24th anniversary
of the 1989 crackdown at Tiananmen Square.
