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Tuesday, Jun. 8, 2021

Does the Chinese government continue to suppress discussion or commemoration of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests?

Stevie Rosignol-Cortez, Gigafact

yes

Continuing censorship and a crackdown in Hong Kong underscore China’s determination to suppress discussion and commemoration of the 1989 events in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.

On June 4, 1989, the Chinese government moved to disperse pro-democracy protestors who had been gathering for weeks. Armed forces killed hundreds of protestors and arrested thousands. Exact numbers have never been confirmed.

Public commemoration of the incident is officially banned in China, but Hong Kong residents have organized an annual vigil each June 4 since 1990. This year’s event was banned due to coronavirus restrictions, despite Hong Kong having had no local cases in six weeks. Police enforced the ban and made several arrests.

The Council on Foreign Relations reports that the Chinese government blocks sites like Twitter, Wikipedia and Facebook as June 4 approaches, as well as any related keywords or media.

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