Thirty-seven years after Tiananmen, families still seek redress as Beijing censors remembrance

Nearly four decades later, public discussion of the events remains taboo in China, where the topic is strictly censored. Chinese authorities try to prevent any remembrance of the events, and according to the AP news agency, police recently forbade relatives of victims from visiting a cemetery on the anniversary. The bereaved families continue to demand clarification and compensation to this day.

The bereaved families' demands

The association 'Mothers of Tiananmen' has stated that the government does not fulfill its responsibility, refuses reparation, and suppresses public discussion of the events. Beijing has historically blamed counter-revolutionaries for the unrest, claiming they wanted to overthrow the Communist Party.

In Hong Kong, where Victoria Park was traditionally a site where the massacre was commemorated, the annual vigil has been banned since the COVID-19 pandemic. Artist Chen Sanmu stretched a 6.4-meter-long red thread near the park to symbolize the date of the events, but plainclothes police officers took down his personal details and searched him a few minutes after he set up the installation.

Remembrance abroad, censorship at home

Despite official suppression, information about the Tiananmen Square events continues to reach young Chinese people through unexpected channels. The events involved protesters who fought for democratic reforms, and their story persists in fragments across the Chinese internet despite censorship.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a statement on the anniversary, declaring: 'On June 4, the world commemorates the 37th anniversary of when the Chinese Communist Party ordered its troops to attack thousands of peaceful demonstrators on and around Tiananmen Square.' He added: 'No amount of censorship can erase the past,' and said 'Those who made sacrifices to defend their unalienable rights to free speech and peaceful assembly will one day be rehabilitated.' The Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Rubio's remarks.

International reactions

Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te also used the occasion to criticize Beijing, saying a 'truly great country' should not rely on a powerful military but should face the wounds of its history. He expressed hope that China would face the events, acknowledge the truth, and begin a dialogue.

The contrast between official silence in mainland China and commemorations abroad has become a fixture of each June 4. While foreign leaders issue statements and diaspora communities hold vigils, families in China say their appeals for transparency and compensation continue to be met with surveillance and obstruction.