Chinese authorities erase Tiananmen crackdown from public memory
AP News • • world
Key Points:
- Chinese authorities are intensifying efforts to erase public memory of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, including barring relatives of victims from visiting a Beijing cemetery on the anniversary.
- The Tiananmen Mothers group continues to demand full disclosure, compensation, and legal accountability for the crackdown, describing it as a crime and maintaining their remembrance despite suppression.
- In Hong Kong, police have increased security to prevent commemorations of the crackdown, banning the annual candlelight vigil since 2020 and charging organizers under the national security law.
- U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the censorship, asserting that it cannot erase history, while Chinese officials accused the U.S. of interfering in China’s internal affairs.
- An annual vigil was held in Taiwan with reduced attendance due to bad weather, amid heightened tensions as China sanctioned foreign lawmakers for visiting the island.