China wants to “erase the memories” of the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown by preventing a vigil in Hong Kong on Saturday to mark the 33rd anniversary of the events, the US secretary of state said.
“Today the the struggle for democracy and freedom continues to resonate in Hong Kongwhere the annual vigil to commemorate the Tiananmen Massacre was banned by the People’s Republic of China and Hong Kong authorities in an attempt to erase memories of that day,” Anthony Blinken said in a statement.
It has been 33 years since the Chinese military dispersed student-led protests in central Beijing’s Tiananmen Square calling for democratic reforms for the country, causing a death toll that is still up for debate. Estimates reach ten thousand victims., although Beijing claims that the repression of the “counterrevolutionary riots” caused the death of two hundred civilians. In honoring the “brave protesters,” Blinken said that the protests “would not be forgotten”.
THE Hong Kong police partially closed Victoria Park on Friday, where, until 2019, a candlelight vigil was held to commemorate the date. The authorities of the Chinese semi-autonomous region had previously warned that most of the spaces, where these events usually took place, would be closed between Friday night and early Sunday morning.
Macau and Hong Kong were the only Chinese territories where tributes to the victims of June 4, 1989 were tolerated. In 2020, authorities in Macau and Hong Kong banned vigils in public spaces for the first time in 30 years., in a justified decision with the work to prevent covid-19. The ban continued last year.
“We will continue to expose the atrocities and human rights violations committed by the People’s Republic of China, including in Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet, and demand accountability,” Blinken promised.
EJ // EJ
Portugal/End
Source: Observadora
