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Tiananmen Square Anniversary -- China Steps Up Repression

by Barbara McPherson | April 30, 2009 at 09:36 am

709 views | 69 Recommendations | 7 comments

With the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square approaching, Chinese authorities have stepped up surveillance of activists and human rights workers. People have been detained and threatened with violence for pursuing their legal rights.

In the first four months of 2009, Amnesty International has documented at least four cases of lawyers who were threatened with violence by the authorities as they defended their clients, at least ten cases where lawyers were hindered from meeting or representing clients, and at least one case in which a lawyer has been detained for doing his work.

“If anything, the crackdown on human rights activists is escalating as we approach the 20th anniversary of the 1989 Beijing pro-democracy protests,” said Roseann Rife, Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Deputy Director. “Most worrying is the complete disregard for national laws and the obstructions thrown in front of lawyers trying to do their jobs.”

April 1989 saw more than a million people gathered in Tiananmen Square demonstrating their peaceful support for democratic reform. Tents were set up and the 'sit in' continued until the nights of June 3 and 4 when the authorities sent in military. Thousands of unarmed demonstrators were killed and many more injured.

I was in Chengdu a couple of years after Tiananmen Square. The ordinary people there were still so spooked by the repressive regime that they only referred to the incident as 6, 4, 9 not daring to speak the words.

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Amy Judd

at 12:09 on April 30th, 2009

I can't belive it has been 20 years already - I've never watched footage from Tianamen Square all together before - wow, devastating.

Rhonda J Mangus

at 13:55 on April 30th, 2009

Thanks for this, Barb.

Karl Gotthardt - albertacowpoke

at 13:57 on April 30th, 2009

Thanks Barbara for bringing this to the forefront again.

Uwe Paschen

at 16:10 on April 30th, 2009

The Revolution that was not to be. There are called terrorist today. All over the World people did rise up against oppression and injustice yet most failed and where labelled TERRORIST rather the Rebels or Revolutionaries.

In the case of China, even though it did fail, it did bring in some positive changes though as well.

djermano

at 17:02 on April 30th, 2009

This story is not valid or real. The Chinese know that the Capitalist Banks have crashed, so why do they want that to happen in China? There is less protests today than anytime in China history.... What was really idiotic about Tiananmen back then is that China's leader at that time was Deng Xiao Ping who was pro Democracy, and the students who wanted Democracy wanted to over throw him? So it is true Democracy implodes upon itself...

Rev. Jermano

Barbara McPherson

at 08:14 on May 1st, 2009

Reverend, I'm sure you have a point of view and it is valid to you. Let me tell you a little story. I once borrowed a promo film on the Beijing Zoo from the PRC Consulate. In part of the film they showed training methods. They showed a monkey that they wanted to ride a tricycle. The monkey was tied to the trike and objecting vigorously. The handler went off camera and came back with a live rooster. He proceeded to chop off the rooster's head in front of the monkey, spraying blood all over. The monkey was then much more compliant. Remember this was a promo film from the PRC Consulate, not some evil, running dog capitalist.

If you are indeed somewhere in China you must be familiar with the folk saying there: Show them the rooster. What happened in 1989 in Tiananmen Square was the people were shown the rooster.

Premier Deng, I believe, from talking to PRC citizens at the time, said "Let a few get rich" and did not promote democracy.

djermano

at 16:49 on May 1st, 2009

And so chickens are killed everyday, and people put them in their pots for soup. Whatever the reaction to the monkey (smell etc)....can be suggested from the reasons to why 911 blood was spilled everywhere... Certainly Deng Xiao Ping was pre-pre-911 by many years..and yet Democracy took hold by the big corporations that ultimately collapsed. The little monkey was right all along wasn't he!!!!! Deng Xiao Ping was not only for a few to get rich. He is revered in China more so than Chairman Mao.....but in a different way. Mao won the war, and it was Deng Xiao Ping who realized the way for China prosperity. Many students did not know Deng Xiao Ping's views....and were following advice from screwball Western Professors.. You think those professors were for real Democracy or whatever that is? Not by the hair of my chinny chin chin.

Rev. Jermano