It is 20 years since the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 culminated in the Tiananmen Square massacre. In this gallery we look at the events leading up to the massacre.
China has changed enormously in the twenty years since then, but the Communist Party's attitude toward 1989 has remained constant. It insists there were no peaceful protests and no "massacre," just "counterrevolutionary riots" that were pacified by soldiers who showed great restraint. It refuses to acknowledge the losses to relatives of the hundreds of victims, tries to keep young Chinese ignorant of what happened and encourages specialists in the West to stop dwelling on 1989.
President Obama is committed to creating the most open and accessible administration in American history. To send questions, comments or concerns to the President, please use the form here: www.whitehouse.gov/contact
China has changed enormously in the twenty years since then, but the Communist Party's attitude toward 1989 has remained constant. It insists there were no peaceful protests and no "massacre," just "counterrevolutionary riots" that were pacified by soldiers who showed great restraint. It refuses to acknowledge the losses to relatives of the hundreds of victims, tries to keep young Chinese ignorant of what happened and encourages specialists in the West to stop dwelling on 1989.
The West will NEVER allow China to forget the Tienanmen Square massacre. Not as long as those indelible images of the massacre circulate around the world. Already, determined hackers are penetrating and punching holes in the Chinese government's wall of Internet censorship. Whether the Chinese government likes it or not, it will eventually have to deal with it. Its obstinancy over Tienanmen will only be matched with equal obstinancy by the outside world.
President Obama is committed to creating the most open and accessible administration in American history. To send questions, comments or concerns to the President, please use the form here: www.whitehouse.gov/contact
