This June 4th, the 36th anniversary of the crackdown on demonstrators in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square, passed quietly in the People’s Republic of China. Of course, the atrocity could not be mentioned, let alone debated, in the PRC. The Chinese Communist Party long ago deposited the slaughter, in which at least hundreds and perhaps thousands died, in the national memory hole. Even now the regime tightens security on the massacre’s anniversary to prevent any embarrassing incidents.
The U.S. should oppose Beijing’s attempt to extend its controls beyond its own borders. And build a coalition of states unwilling to allow the PRC to treat their lands like its own.
The repression, which went far beyond protestors in Beijing, exposed a tragic what if, given the depth of support for political liberalization, if not full democratization, across the country. However, “paramount leader” Deng Xiaoping demonstrated his Maoist roots by inaugurating a far-reaching purge. Detailed Amnesty International: “Immediately after the military crackdown, the Chinese authorities began to hunt down those involved in the demonstrations. Thousands of people were detained, tortured, imprisoned or executed after unfair trials charged with ‘counter-revolutionary’ crimes.”
Millions were also kicked out of the CCP for their heretical views. One of the victims was Zhao Ziyang, previously anointed party general secretary by Deng. Zhao opposed the deadly military operation; he was ousted and held under house arrest until his death in 2005.
Of course, no one was held accountable for their crimes. Observed Yalkun Uluyol of Human Rights Watch: “The Chinese government has never owned up to the Tiananmen Massacre, much less provided redress for victims and their families. Beijing’s enforced amnesia has deepened authoritarian rule in China, yet it has not extinguished demands for the truth, democracy, and respect for human rights.”
Today when questioned about Tiananmen Beijing calmly dismisses the “political turmoil” about which “the Chinese government has already reached a clear conclusion.” Behind the scenes, however, the PRC remains fearful of any disclosure and uses modern technology in an attempt to extirpate history.
Reported Australia’s ABC News:
More than 230 pages of censorship instructions prepared by Chinese social media platforms were shared by industry insiders with the ABC. They were intended to be circulated among multi-channel networks or MCNs — companies that manage the accounts of content creators across multiple social and video platforms like Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok. The files reveal deep anxiety among Chinese authorities about the spread of any reference to the most violently suppressed pro-democracy movement in the country’s history.
Unfortunately, there was silence on June 4th in Hong Kong as well. The protestors who did not gather offer an unfortunate reminder that the once liberal city is no longer any different than any other Chinese metropolis. For years, despite Hong Kong’s official transfer to the People’s Republic of China, thousands of people turned out to mourn the murderous crackdown in Tiananmen Square and across the PRC. But no longer.
In 2020 Beijing launched a ruthless campaign in the Special Administration Region, whose autonomy had been guaranteed for 50 years after the 1997 turnover. China imposed the “National Security Law,” or Article 23. Stanley Ng, a member of the rubber-stamp National People’s Congress which approved the legislation, explained that the NSL was ambiguous in order to provide the “real effects of intimidation and deterrence.”
Today criticism of PRC rule, including the actions of such local factotums as Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu, can lead to prosecution and imprisonment. In this way, at least, Hong Kong has become largely indistinguishable from any mainland Chinese city.
This June 4 the authorities succeeded in what should be known as Operation Memory Hole. Reported NPR: “Police said they brought 10 people on suspicion of breaching public peace to a police station for investigation. Three were still detained late Wednesday, while the rest were allowed to leave. Police also arrested a woman for failing to show her identity document and a man for obstructing police officers from performing their duties.” Mission accomplished!
Of course, suppressing the memory of Tiananmen Square is but one aspect of the pervasive violation of human rights, which has earned China an abysmal 9 out of 100 on Freedom House’s rating of political and civil freedom. That’s a bit better than such bottom-feeders as Afghanistan and North Korea but remains very deep in “Not Free” territory.
Repression has dramatically worsened during General Secretary and President Xi Jinping’s ascendancy. It still isn’t the horror of Mao’s China, and personal autonomy as well as income is much greater today. Nevertheless, in almost every way the Chinese people are less free today than a decade or so ago.
Chinese Reach Into Other Countries
Washington’s ability to influence events within any sovereign nation, and especially one like the PRC, is limited. However, of particular concern should be Beijing’s attempt to extend its reach to other countries, including the U.S. The British group Article 19 has published a disturbing report entitled “Going Global: China’s Transnational Repression of Protestors Worldwide.”
According to Article 19: “As the CCP has cracked down on and censored discussion of protest at home, it has also escalated acts of [transnational repression], targeting diaspora communities and other protest movements seeking to raise awareness of human rights abuses in China or to commemorate high profile protest anniversaries — from the 1989 Tiananmen Square Massacre to the 2019 Pro-Democracy protests in Hong Kong to the 2022 White Paper Protests.”
Thus, even those who have fled the PRC find themselves vulnerable to its security forces. While living in nominally free nations, “Protesters targeted by TNR frequently live in fear of surveillance; targeting; abduction and forced repatriation, especially around embassies and consulates; and ‘collective punishment’ retaliation against relatives still in China.”
Responding to what amounts to violations of the sovereignty of the U.S. and other nations — something which Beijing vociferously rejects when criticized for its internal policies — should be a top priority for Washington. Economics and trade are important, but so is foreign interference with the freedom of America’s citizens and their guests, especially political refugees. The U.S. should work with not only Western friends which also value individual liberty, but also other nations which emphasize their own sovereignty. Even states otherwise friendly to the PRC might support the principle, since they aren’t likely to want Chinese agents active on their territory.
For Sherlock Holmes the key to one case was the dog that didn’t bark. For us today evidence of China’s expanding repression is the Hong Kong demonstration that didn’t occur. Alas, Hong Kongers who enjoyed Western-style civil liberties as recently as five years ago are no longer free. The U.S. should oppose Beijing’s attempt to extend its controls beyond its own borders. And build a coalition of states unwilling to allow the PRC to treat their lands like its own.
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