Tiananmen Square, 1989
- June 3-4, 1989
- Democracy movements had grown in strength since the arrival of Deng
- May 4 1989 that have mass rallies in honour of the 70th anniversary of the last major democratic uprising
- Many students remain and start a hunger strike
- Li Peng took a harsh stance on this and ordered the PLA to take whatever action necessary
- Army arrives in early June and are reluctant to deal with the crowd
- 3 June they broke into the square and opened fire
- 400-800 people killed, many were not students and many killed on streets outside of the square
- Reaffirmed China's hardline on party dissent and public freedoms
- However economic changes were irreversible and 1992 Deng ended price controls
The Mystery of 'Tank Man'
- Never in World History has a single image captured a struggle quite so well
- Rumoured to have been named Wang Weilin, a 19 year old student
- He has been rumoured also to have been shot, imprisoned and never found and still free in hiding
- In a 1992 interview with Barbara Walters, then General Secretary Jiang Zemin stated "I think never killed"
Summary
Chinese troops storm through Tiananmen Square in the center of Beijing, killing and arresting thousands of pro-democracy protesters. The brutal Chinese government assault on the protesters shocked the West and brought denunciations and sanctions from the United States. In May 1989, nearly a million Chinese, mostly young students, crowded into central Beijing to protest for greater democracy and call for the resignations of Chinese Communist Party leaders deemed too repressive. For nearly three weeks, the protesters kept up daily vigils, and marched and chanted. Western reporters captured much of the drama for television and newspaper audiences in the United States and Europe. On June 4, 1989, however, Chinese troops and security police stormed through Tiananmen Square, firing indiscriminately into the crowds of protesters. Turmoil ensued, as tens of thousands of the young students tried to escape the rampaging Chinese forces. Other protesters fought back, stoning the attacking troops and overturning and setting fire to military vehicles. Reporters and Western diplomats on the scene estimated that at least 300, and perhaps thousands, of the protesters had been killed and as many as 10,000 were arrested.