China has heightened security measures in Beijing and Hong Kong on the 35th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown, quashing any attempts to commemorate the bloody event that ended months-long pro-democracy protests in 1989. The Chinese government has long suppressed any memory of the crackdown, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds, if not thousands, of demonstrators and marked a turning point in modern Chinese history.
On Tuesday, checkpoints and rows of police vehicles lined the major roads leading to Tiananmen Square in Beijing, while life went on mostly as normal for tourists visiting the area. The closest subway exit to the square was closed, and a viewing point atop Tiananmen Gate was inaccessible, according to a visitor registration website. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning reiterated the government's stance on the event, stating, "As to the political disturbance that occurred in the late 1980s, the Chinese government has long had a clear conclusion."
In Hong Kong, once the only place in China where Tiananmen memorials could take place, police took at least two people off the streets as part of an effort to prevent any public remembrance. Officers were out in force in the bustling Causeway Bay shopping district close to a park that had hosted a huge candlelight vigil marking the anniversary for decades. An elderly man was seen being taken away after holding up two hand-written posters, while activist Alexandra Wong, known as "Grandma Wong," was also taken away after chanting slogans.
The silencing of voices in Hong Kong has led to the growth of commemorative events overseas, with vigils planned in Washington, D.C., London, Brisbane, and other cities this year. In Taiwan, people laid flowers and plastic candle lights on a banner displaying the numbers 8964, representing June 4, 1989, at an evening event in Taipei. "As long as other places can still protest, we must continue to protest," said Taipei resident Leo Chiang.
Tiananmen Mothers, a group formed by families of the victims, made an online appeal to the Chinese government to publish the names and numbers of those who died, grant compensation to the victims and their relatives, and pursue legal responsibility for those responsible. The group's letter, signed by 114 family members, stated, "The June 4 tragedy is a historical tragedy that the Chinese government must face and explain to its people, and some people in the Government at that time should be held legally responsible for the indiscriminate killing of innocents."
On the eve of the anniversary, Hong Kong police briefly detained performance artist Sanmu Chen on a street in Causeway Bay. Chen mimed the action of drinking in front of a police van and appeared to be drawing or writing something in the air before officers approached him. Police later said that Chen was taken to a police station for causing chaos at the scene but was released unconditionally after an investigation.
Critics argue that the disappearance of the Tiananmen vigil in Hong Kong illustrates the drastic erosion of freedoms promised to be kept intact when the former British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. The group that organized the vigil disbanded after the enactment of a national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020, and three of its former leaders, including activist Chow Hang-tung, were charged with subversion under the sweeping law.
Despite the efforts to silence remembrance, some Hong Kong residents found ways to commemorate the event privately, such as running 6.4 kilometers or sharing Tiananmen-related content on social media. An independent bookstore displayed "35/5" on its window, a roundabout reference to the date of the crackdown, and wrote on Instagram that police officers were stationed outside the shop for an hour on Sunday, recording the identity details of customers.
