Remembering Tiananmen
June 4th, 2008 by Kim 
Today marks the 19th anniversary of events at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, where peaceful student protests ended in a violent military crackdown on the night of June 3 and early on the morning of June 4, 1989. Reports on how many protesters were killed is still uncertain, with different sources reporting anywhere from a few hundred to a few thousand.
Nineteen years later, and after one of the most devastating natural disasters in recent Chinese history, it is interesting to see how much has changed in China, and how much still remains the same. Chinese media have become arguably more open with their reporting, but there are still strict controls placed on journalists, even in advance of about 20,000 foreign reporters descending upon Beijing in August.
We still do not know exactly what happened that night, or have an accurate tally of how many people were killed, and the Chinese government is still extremely sensitive about large gatherings anywhere near the square. Many young Chinese grow up with unclear notions, or no idea at all about what happened in 1989. That year is widely considered a turning point in their nation’s history, especially in its foreign relations. All of this is testament to the fact that, even after nearly two decades, China still has a long way to go.
Ma Jian has an op-ed in the NYT this morning about Tiananmen in light of the Sichuan earthquake.
Photo: Arguably the most famous image of the Tiananmen Square protests, photographed for the AP in 1989 by Jeff Widener, who is now a photographer at the Advertiser.
June 4th, 2008 at 11:55 am
I will never forget!
June 4th, 2008 at 9:52 pm
That’s the Man of the Century right there in that picture. It’s a more piercing picture of defiance against tyranny than the monk setting himself ablaze or the raised fists of a Black Panther.
However, what strikes me the most was that the tank did not run him over. I remember watching the video of it years ago and the tank tried to move around him at least once or twice and each time the man stepped in front, but still the tank driver, possibly out of his own conscience, chose not to crush him.
Perhaps there is hope to be had after all.
I think once the current generation passes away and more and more exposure to democracy and freedom (olympics!) occurs, the Chinese equivalent of the Berlin Wall will fall.
I knew someone who visited a rural part of China and no one had any clue about what happened at Tiananmen Square. It doesn’t exist in their history books.
June 4th, 2008 at 9:59 pm
And I think the fact that there are 400 comments about a women’s football camp and a haircut and only 1 (besides me) on this post about one of the greatest human rights violations in the last 2 decades by the superpower with the most potential to antagonize the USA in the next 2 generations proves the fact that the brain drain phenomenon in Hawaii really is true.
Sad, but true.
June 8th, 2008 at 6:22 pm
Wang Dan for the Washington Post, “An Olympic Amnesty”
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/06/03/AR2008060303541.html
The author, a leading student organizer of the 1989 movement who was subject to imprisonment and exile, makes a compelling appeal to the Chinese government, and expresses hope in the Olympics as a catalyst for political change and the eventual development of a strong civil society in China.
A related article from the Guardian gives me hope that his call might at least be heard, as others have siezed this critical moment in modern Chinese history to begin advocating more strongly for greater government transparency, open acknowledgement and discussion of the past, and redress for human rights violations.
Jonathan Watts for the Guardian, “China urged to release Tiananmen Square prisoners”
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/04/china.humanrights
June 8th, 2008 at 10:42 pm
Eph: Appreciate the links. Both are important reads.
frankie: Thank you.