Date: Sun, 5 Jun 1994 16:56:42 EDT Reply-To: Weihe Guan Sender: China-Net From: Weihe Guan Subject: Chinese Community Forum (#9430) Comments: To: china-nt@uga.cc.uga.edu To: Multiple recipients of list CHINA-NT ==+==+==+== C h i n e s e C o m m u n i t y F o r u m ==+==+==+== Special Issue for the Fifth Anniversary of June 4th Beijing Massacre Sunday, June 5, 1994 (No. 9430) +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ Chinese Community Forum (CCF) is an e-journal published on China-Net. CCF is dedicated to the discussion on the issues related to the Chinese community. The opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent the views of the Editorial Board of CCF. Contributions to the discussions and suggestions of new topics are very much appreciated. +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ # of Table of Contents Author | Lines ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***========== 1. To the Dead and Living Victims of 1989 .................. Feimo 40 2. Retrospection of 89 Democratic Movement ............ Daniel Qiu 121 3. June 4th is a Tragedy of Our Past .................... Sheng Wu 90 4. History Making and Self Reflexivity ............. Shiping Zhang 87 5. Reflection on 6.4 ....................................... J. J. 37 6. Remembrance of "6.4" -- A Perspective ............. Jienan Chen 157 7. Let's Pray for the Victims ..................... Kenny K. Kwong 78 ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***========== -*- From The Editor -*- Five years ago that night, the tanks, the gun shots, the fire and the blood in Beijing held the breath of the entire world. People were shocked, angered, frightened, embarrassed, confused, ... "What?!" "How come?!" "Why???" ... The day of June 4th 1989 put Chinese, more than ever, into thinking, independent thinking. Five years are not yet enough to reach a conclusion. However, if the lives and blood paid five years ago was for democracy in China, those of us who survived the bloodshed can at least say: "The blood was not shed in vain, it had awakened Chinese." Independent thinking and expression of personal opinions are the first steps towards democracy. We have been learning, harder than ever, since five years ago. This issue of CCF presents some of the thoughts and opinions related to the June 4th Beijing massacre. We leave the right-wrong judgement to our readers. In next issue, CCF will focus on the on-coming IFCSS 6th Annual Congress. Contributions from all aspects are welcome. Democracy can only be derived from participation of every individuals. ===========***==========***==========**==========***==========***========== 1. To the Dead and Living Victims of 1989 .................. Feimo 40 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- Year in and year out, five years were gone. Tian An Men square is elegant, spacious and crowded as before. The time erases the bloody and horrible scene of those black days, but when you stand on the huge stage of Chinese history, the historical panorama merges in your brain with some bitter taste, the first scene is June the fourth. To the dead, Tian An Men square is a holly place for them. They devoted their lives to the nation bravely. They were innocent, they were young students, they were the martyrs of the coming democracy. It is their young and energetic lives, their red and hot blood, that gave the answer why our nation have been standing in the world for five thousand years. They are the spirit of our Chinese. I believe in the near future that day should be the national holiday, to commemorate the dead students, to tell the on- coming generation that democracy born from blood, not from heaven. For the living victims, though survived, they are still suffering. Some of them were imprisoned, some of them are still behind bars, some of them lost their jobs, some of them lost chances for promotion and further study due to the political prejudice since they directly or indirectly involved in this pro-democracy movement. Their wounds may heal up but the pain remains when they think of or revisit Tian An Men Square. They did not lose hope; they did not evade; they are optimistic. They are taking part in the economic evolution and anticipating another tide of democracy movement. With their persistence and the martyr's blood, the goddess of democracy will rise again in China. The best way to do good for our Chinese, I think, is to help our motherland to improve her economic status in the world. This is also the correct way to pursuit democracy for our Chinese people. No matter what progress we achieve and what status we obtain in a foreign country, we root in and belong to the land we Chinese share, CHINA. I hope all the Chinese in the world hands in hands. God bless Chinese and my motherland. Remember for ever the martyr's blood is red. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Retrospection of 89 Democratic Movement...............Daniel Qiu 121 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- It was five years ago! Every Chinese on this planet remembers the scene in Beijing, in Tian An Men Square five years ago. Many of us still feel that our hearts bleeding. It was five years ago! The democratic movement of 1989 was crashed in Tian An Men square, harshly by the army authorized by the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. It has been five years! During the past five years, what have we learned from the tragic failure of the 1989 democratic movement? I say it was a tragic failure, because hundreds, probably thousands young innocent lives were lost. I say it was a tragic failure, because the reform process was hindered, the open and liberal spirit of late 80's was lost. I say it was a tragic failure, because the democratic force in China and within the Communist Party was defeated and have never since reorganized themselves into a strong force inside China. I say it was a tragic failure, because the relationship between the Chinese people and the rest of the world was being twisted and the image of Tian An Men Square in the minds of the people all over the world is no longer the Tian An Men Square we knew of in our childhood memory. It has become the symbol of blood, violence and devil. What a tragedy. There should be left no doubt that the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party is largely responsible for the tragedy. The leadership's unwillingness and incapability to promote a meaningful communication with the young students, its unwillingness and incapability to deal with a massive discontent, its unwillingness and incapability of making compromise and most importantly, its total misunderstanding of the situation caused the great tragedy. However, five years after the tragic failure, it is time for us, the self-proclaimed democratic force, to conduct a self examination. We need to ask ourselves: what were our responsibilities for this tragic failure? Had we proceeded differently, could the result be different? Could we have been able to change the cause of history? Could we be able to avoid the loss of innocent lives? One big failure of the movement was not able to define a clear and achievable goal. Democracy is an abstract concept. It is achieved by reaching each and yet indispensible small thing. In most part of the movement, it was never clear that any particular demand was raised, except "freedom and democracy". It is part of the deficiency of our Chinese intellectuals: We always want something big, something quick. We lack the patient, we lack the tactic. We want to run before we even learn to walk. Even today, we still have not learned the lesson. Many of us are still calling actions for unachievable goals. My fellow comrades, look at the history five years ago, we should have learned it. Another big failure of the movement was its lack of tactics. We had the truth, yet we did not know to stop at the point when the situation was in favor of us. April 27, May 13, twice million people demonstration had formed a much favorable climate for us. Yet, we did not realize that it was the best we could get in that situation. Again we wanted something bigger, something faster. We demanded more, yet we did not realize that pushing too hard would be bound to back fire. We were determined to force the government to the corner. We dreamed that a democratic government to be born the very next day. The blood of our brothers and sisters washed away our beautiful dreams. The third big failure of the movement was its unwillingness to work with the pro-students, pro-democratic forces within the leadership of the Communist Party. One say was that we would not get involved in the power struggle within the party. But we forgot that our power was very limited. We forgot that we neither had the military, nor did we have the party bureaucrats and state apparatus. We only had ideas -- vague, abstract ideas. Even if a democratic government was born from us the very next day, we would not know how to run the country, how to lead the economy. We had no credit among the people whom we were trying hard to help. We had to reinvent the wheel from the very beginning. Had we realized that, had we worked together with the pro-democratic forces inside the Party, we probably could form a pro-democratic force which could assert its influence from the top to the bottom. Think about that, we would be thrilled. Yet, we failed. We failed even to recognize it. Again, we learned the lesson from the blood of our brothers and sisters. We somehow inherited the spirit of uncompromising from the leadership of the Communist Party. This was the fourth big failure. One proverb says that one step backward is two steps forward. Yet we did not believe it. Again, we back to the problem of wanting big, wanting quick. We did not want to admit that our capability was limited. We dreamed that we could achieve anything and everything as long as we insisted pushing forward. We went to such an extreme that we demanded the "Dictator", who still had the military and the State apparatus, to get down, and worst of all, even believed that it could be achieved with our bear fists, without stirring up a massive state of unrest and anarchy. If one summarizes the above, a central theme of the mistakes made by the 89 democratic movement was the unwillingness and incapability to realize the reality. The leadership of the movement failed to realize the dark and cruel reality of politics, failed to realize the limitation of ourselves, failed to realize "who is our friend and who is our enemy", which our "Great Leader" once proclaimed to be the foremost important issue of a revolution, and failed to realize the importance of proper strategy and tactics. I have to confess that I should be the very last person to blame or criticize the people who led this tragic, yet heroic movement. I was thousands miles away on this side of the pacific while they were endangering their lives. I shall not blame them. After all, the only one should bear the blame or condemnation is the leadership of the Communist Party. Although some people have been critical of the personal behaviour of some of the democratic movement leaders, although some people have complained that the democratic movement lacked democracy itself, I do not intend to do any microanalysis on these people. Above all, their courage and their heroic spirit have my deep respects. However, I always believe that we need to thoroughly analyze what we have failed to achieve and why we failed. It is in this sense, I provide the above macroanalysis of the 89 democratic movement. It is also in this sense, I also hope that we shall hold higher standards to those people whom we regarded as our leaders. Remember, you are not only endangering your own life. You are endangering the lives of those innocent young people who are following your leadership. Only having heroism and courage is not enough to be a leader! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 3. June 4th is a Tragedy of Our Past .................... Sheng Wu 90 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- In 1989, I was a college freshman in Peking University. In that tragic night, I was first in QingLong Bridge trying to block a dozen of military vehicles, and was beaten by a baton from armed police. I later spent the whole night on campus, and the next day a heartbreaking news came in -- Hui Sun, a classmate in my class (Class 4, 88/Chemistry) who was in the line of the one week long hunger strike from the very beginning, died in the cross between Xi Dan and Chang An. In the past five years, I have been thinking about June 4 incident quite a lot and have experienced great changes in my mind. In the first year after the June 4, 1989, the historic upheavals in Eastern Europe and the afterwards political repression in China gave me the impression that it was a great regret that the democratic movement in 1989 failed. I cursed the party leaders who were responsible for the crackdown and especially the puppet who was most vulnerable for any one to blame. By the time I left Beijing, things around the world changed again greatly. I changed my mind a little bit. I felt that things in Europe changed too fast, and I accepted some of the government's propaganda that stability was necessary. After I came to the US, things in the world have again changed greatly. The situation in Russian deteriorated in a free fall and the government's policy in mainland China has been working perfectly well. I live in the Pasadena area, a place where you could feel even the smallest change back in China, and I could feel that patriotism and national pride are getting overwhelmingly stronger in the Chinese community here. It seems that everything did by the government is correct, and the whole June 4 incident is just a tragedy for the victims but good for the nation. But here, like many other Chinese students, I often face a series of questions asked by many others and myself. Is everything back in China just fine now? Don't you have to worry about the death of the paramount? Don't you feel insecure if you go back to China? Some people would give an answer like this -- I do not care, as long as I could realize my American dream here, like a house for my family, and wagon for ten people. Some people would say -- I do care, but I have little I could do for these questions, I'd better care about my American dream first. Some people would say -- I care and I am going to do something in order to be sure that we get the positive answers. I remember that, after 1989, I had the fear that the cultural revolution could be repeated. I remember the talk I had with an immigrant from Hong Kong. She said: "you just can not trust those people in the top, history just repeats itself, it's very sad but it's true." I also remember the question I asked a rich guy from Taiwan: "you guys are rich in Taiwan, why did you get a green card here?" Many of the people got very rich in China in the past several years but they still prefer to buy a house here and get a green card first. In my opinion, beyond some economic considerations, we all have the same fear in common -- the fear of insecurity, the fear that history will repeat itself, and none of us can avoid facing the fact that America is still the most secure place for anyone who wish to have an American dream realized. Now, it seems that we are facing a very contradictory puzzle. The puzzle is that most people involved in the June 4 movement are patriotic and idealistic, yet if the movement did not fail, today's China would be like today's Bosnia or even Rwanda. The puzzle is that the repression by the government was so bloody, especially in the eyes of some Americans who have been living under serenity for generations, yet it did save China from slipping into anarchy and social disorder. The puzzle is that although the current government policy is generating unprecedented hope and prosperity, we still have the fear deep in our heart that history will just repeat itself. These puzzles force us to think about June 4 incident over and over. June 4 incident is a tragedy in our history, yet this incident together with the historic changes in Eastern Europe and Russia have been teaching us a lesson so valuable that we could never forget. The incident is a tragedy in our history, yet we can not deny the good wills that millions of common people involved in the incident all had in common, that is we wished a piece of land where one fifth of the world population could realize the dream that every human being would dream about. The incident is a tragedy in our history, yet we all can not avoid facing the challenge that we, as Chinese, all have great responsibility to revive our Nation. Our Nation has been under humiliation for the past one and a half century and a half, and has been underdeveloped in the world for several centuries, yet it is also a nation with a history of five thousand years and had been leading the world in civilization and humanity in the past. We all face the most difficult task to heal the pain generated in the tragedy and to start a new future. Let us all hope and do whatever we could so that the tragedy in history will not repeat itself and the good wills of the victims in June 4, 1989 will be realized one day. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4. History Making and Self Reflexivity ............. Shiping Zhang 87 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- This essay is not to "celebrate ", nor to morn on, nor to thrust libido into history and our memory, nor to curse China, her people, and her leaders, but to reflect upon and reach beyond the confinement of our parochial vistas. Let me put it this way: politics is about rationality while we often are not rational about it. On this occasion, as one witness of the so-called "Tiananmen Incident", I call upon our fellow countrymen to reflect upon it, rather than just releasing our outpourings of anger and anxieties. In 1989, we were all acting as if we were making history. We were deceived by the media and the exciting scenes, indulging in the idea that all China's problems would be solved overnight. Some even predicted that the government would step down soon. A new era would come, culminating in the inauguration of Wang Dan as the president, Wu Er Kai Xi as the prime minister, etc. Immediately after the crackdown, we travelled Gan Su and Xin Jiang. It is in western part of China that I realized how dangerous it would have been if China had followed Zhao Ziyang' road. In Ning Xia, we then learnt that Muslims were prepared to slaughter all Chinese residents in the event of a breakdown of the central government. This was especially true in Xin Jiang. It was for the first time in my life that I realized that China is a multinational society, where ethnic conflicts are typically real. I would never agree with the Party upon the crackdown of the kids on the square, neither would I like the way those kids dealt with politics -- Chinese politics. Ironically, in 1986, many people in China would like to praise Gorbachev's political reform while joking about Deng's cat theory. However, history, so far, to the contrary, proved that cat theory is far superb than the Russian story. China is beset with poverty and disorder. Since Huang Di, Chinese emperors could not shirk the responsibilities for famine relief. This is China. During the Tiananmen Incident, many people were ill-prepared for the market reform and for the dynamic precariousness of social life. It was not surprising that we just felt uncomfortable about everything. Lets recall it -- many of those things we were opposed are actually typical consequences of marketization in a society. More importantly, we almost unanimously thought that political reform should precede economic reform. The collective consciousness, the exciting scenes of mass-demonstration, the apparently favorable support of Beijing residents, etc., all made us overjoyed. We were often moved to tears. We were consciously making history! The government was scared by us. Now history were not made by heros, but by "nobody"s! The only reason for doing all this was very simple : We love China. We did this in the hope that China would become strong and prosperous. This is a dream deeply rooted in our sense of responsibility and our cultural identity as Chinese, of which we are so proud of. When Japanese invaded China, all Chinese, men and women, old and young, friends and enemies, pointed their gunpoints at the Japanese. Today, we should stand firm against any attempt to sabotage Deng's plan to modernize China. In particular, we should help China with her efforts to renew MFN with the US. In doing so, we help our parents, sisters, brothers, our first lovers, friends, etc., with their life. This is the best way to remember the year of 1989. The precondition for "making history" in China is that you must identify yourself with China and her culture. Love China, simply put. As a sociologist, I was involved in several research projects on poverty. I met so many who suffer from poverty. they are great, nice people. they need food and order. they made me believe that we should be responsible for what we advocate for the sake of public policy. They deserve satisfaction of basic needs of life. On this occasion, I would like to express my appreciation to Mr. Liu Xiao Bo, and Ms. Dai Qing for their role in the Incident and especially for their laudable rational self-reflectivity in the aftermath of it. they were honest about it and they showed rational reflection upon it. More importantly, their showed their love of their motherland. On the other hand, I strongly denounce those "world citizens" who like to see that Chinese people's bloodshed be a ransom for their dream of democracy. Lets morn on those who fell victims to the incident. Lets look ahead. Lets cheer for Team China! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 5. Reflection on 6.4..........................................J. J. 37 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- My reflection on the Tian An Men (TAM) Tragedy: Facts: 1. Students occupied TAM demanding to end corruption and inflation; 2. Government felt that they were not able to meet the demand and an ultimate show-down was inevitable. The stability is the priority, hence it ordered the students to leave; 3. Students did not want to compromise and started hunger strike; 4. Government, unwilling to back-down, declared the martial law and sent troops to take students away; 5. Beijing residents/students blocked troops for days; 6. Troops smashed resistance with killing; 7. TAM was cleared without killing; 8. Reform continued afterwards, particularly the economic one. Evaluations: a. 1 is justifiable and blameless; b. 2 is generally supported by 3 and 8; c. 3 is admirable, but reconfirmed 2's correctness; d. 4 is shameful, but legitimate; e. 5 is heroic, but probably illegal based on 4; f. 6 is brutal, but may or may not be criminal given e; g. 7 is legal, maybe even correct based on 8. Conclusion: The event may be a tragedy, not a massacre of angles by devils. Lesson: Not everything against the government is for democracy. --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 6. Remembrance of "6.4" -- A Perspective ............. Jienan Chen 157 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- The 5th anniversary of "6.4" is an occasion for unshakable memories, and also for unyielding hopes. I mourn the dead, pray for the alive, and dream for the future of our homeland with which I identify myself. As an ordinary Chinese, I join many, at home and abroad, to commemorate this undying moment of history. What occurred in the Spring of 1989 at Tiananmen and elsewhere in our country will forever be remembered. It was hope versus desperation. Yet, desperation dashed hope and a peaceful movement was turned into a horrible tragedy. While lessons must be learned by both sides, there was no comparison between innocent mistakes on the part of the demonstrators versus calculated crimes on the part of the suppressor. However, it may be worthy to note the event in a historic perspective. The confrontation is the manifestation of explosive contradictions within a transforming society full of cross currents of historical proportions. Our Chinese society is traditionally built on the values of family and community. At the beginning of our ancient civilization, the rulers of the society were father-like figures rising to power and commanding respect based on their "moral authority" (we refer to as "Ming2 Jun1"). Then, as the society grew bigger and bigger (both in size and complexity), "moral authority" (if there was any) alone was insufficient for managing the society. Consequently, there were periods of rule by warlords representing conflicting interests of locals (groups). Therefore, force was needed to achieve and maintain unity and stability. This was the origin of dictatorship. Over the course of thousands of years of Chinese civilization, the turnover of government was always achieved by force. No matter who ruled China, two fundamental characteristics of government have never changed: the form of government is dictatorship, and the value system of government is that of family and community (the cells of the society). These two were interlocked and each could not change without the change of the other. In such system of government, authority must be absolute, and such absolute authority is based on power concentration and moral superiority (at least the assumption thereof), just like in a family or a community. This is referred to by many scholars as a "dead cycle" or "tragic cycle" of government. Democracy had never been the alternative until China was forced to open up to the outside world. However, precisely because the democracy alternative was seen as being forced on China, national pride coupled with cultural tradition have firmly resisted the seemingly inevitable change. Besides, there is yet another important factor -- i.e., national identity. On one hand, the weakness, suffering and humiliation experienced by Chinese people in modern history have led some people to doubt the validity of our culture as well as the system of government, hence the call for rapid (wholesale) change or westernization. On the other hand, nationalism was frequently used by those, who fear dramatic changes, to incite xenophobia that prevents the adoption of ideas originated outside China in disregard of their merits. There rarely was a middle ground. The question, then, is how China can adapt to a new value system required for institutionalized democracy that would lead to a system of government that is "of the people, by the people, and for the people?" From a historic perspective, to break up the "dead cycle" we cannot simply destruct in order to construct. If civilizations are interchangeable and should interact and integrate, philosophically the very existence of a nation or a society lies in its cultural identity. Then, is our Chinese culture resilient enough to be able to adapt to change of times, to retain its identity while allowing absorption of exotic elements of civilization and even integration into the global family of civilizations? The reasoning might seem strange. There are two components of cultural identity: stability and dynamism, which are interdependent. From an engineering point of view, stability concerns system integrity, and dynamism concerns loading capacity. Few doubt the stability of our Chinese culture, but many wonder whether or not there is sufficient dynamism in our culture to afford great loading capacity (ability to absorb exotic values). The answer is to separate the value system of government from that of family and community. By such separation we may be able to preserve our cultural identity while adapting to a democratic system of government. This means that while the value system of government may be changed through transplantation, the social foundation of government can only be transformed through gradual and proportional integration. If we accept the above reasoning, then the best and maybe only option to achieve sustainable democracy in China is "peaceful evolution" -- or peaceful transformation to be less sensitive. In our long and painful history, no radical mass movement or violent revolution had resulted in institutionalized changes toward democracy. The cultural explanation for this failure is the lack of intellectuality in previous revolutions. In our history, no matter how beautiful the intentions were, in the end, any revolution through mass (radical) movement (be it labor strike, peasant rebellion, or student demonstration) inevitably led to another dictatorship, because intellectuals were eventually excluded or suppressed. The social-economic environment was not conducive to intellectuality. Hence, only radicals could get to the top and control the destiny of any mass movement. Why? The reason is both complicated and simple. Complicated because of the profound cultural roots. Yet simple because of the social-economic realities: an underdeveloped economy; wide-spread illiteracy; a largely rural population whose primary pursuit of life have been for feed and habitation (Wen1 Bao3); and the delicate composition of our nation. Some people are quick to point figures at the peasants for their lack of interest in democracy. Well, how many of us really understand democracy and how it works? Even if we do, can we operate it well? There would be no place for democracy in China unless we understood the needs and aspirations of common people. We must know who we are and where we came from before we think about what and where we want China to be. We cannot ask our fellow citizens to sacrifice everything for some ideal which is, at best, still vague to them. The power of ideas and ideals must be seen in examples. The dissociation between intellectuals (the source of idealism) and workers/peasants (the source of realism) has been one of the primary reasons that intellectuality had not sustained in previous revolutions. There were several attempts at peaceful transformation in modern Chinese history of government. But those attempts all met the same fate of "forced abortion" because of the lack of favorable social-economic conditions. Radical transformation from the top down and relying on idealism and elitism lacks populous reception and cannot create social harmony required for any great national endeavors. This is why the scholastic idea of "total westernization" -- literally speaking -- was not and will not be acceptable to a great majority of the society. The ongoing peaceful transformation (at least I hope so) is quite different from the previous ones. The "open door policy" has produced a psychological buffer allowing integration of exotic civilizations. Successful market-oriented economic reforms and associated social changes are creating a social-economic environment conducive to fundamental changes. Relative economic freedom and concurrent social institutions are cultivating the basic features of a civil society. Equally importantly, the end of the "cold war" coupled with the globalization of economies and basic human values present a favorable external impulse for change. Success of the peaceful transformation process rests on the balance between stability and development. How can we find the balance point between political stability and social-economic dynamism? Where do we draw the line between preservation of essential traditional Chinese values and integration of valid western values? How to maintain national unity and territorial integrity that requires a strong central government, in the pursuit of human rights (including minority rights) advances and democratization that warrant power and resources redistribution? It seems there are no easy answers. But one point is becoming more and more clear: democratization demands a conducive social-economic environment which depends, to a large degree, on substantial economic development, as proven in other places, especially in East Asia. In conclusion, for both cultural and social-economic reasons and beyond, democratization in China does not necessarily mean westernization and thus should be placed in a proper context. The ultimate success of Chinese democracy lies in the word "Chinese" -- it must be through revitalization of our proud yet painful culture and reinventing of democracy in China. Ironically, the current communist slogan of "socialism with Chinese characteristics" may ultimately lead to the realization of "democracy with Chinese characteristics." This is not a simple analogy. The key word here is "Chinese," but the key question is Chinese socialism or Chinese democracy? I hope the latter will prevail for the good of our country and the world. By then, democrats or communists, who is in power does not matter -- as long as the government is "of the people, by the people, and for the people." When the day comes that all of us proudly celebrate peace, security and prosperity in our homeland, we may then be able to comfort the souls and honor the deeds of those who fought and died for our nation. Long live the "6.4" spirit! --------------------------------------------------------------------------- 7. Let's Pray for the Victims ..................... Kenny K. Kwong 78 --------------------------------------------------------------------------- On June 4, 1989, one of the most tragic and violent acts of history happened at Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Many of us still could remember our shock, anger, sadness and abomination we felt when we first learned of the massacre. Five years have passed that most tragic day in recent Chinese history on June 4, 1994. According to Amnesty International, "At least a thousand civilians were killed and several thousands injured by troops firing indiscriminately into crowds in Beijing between the 3rd and 9th, June, 1989." The pro-democracy movement in Beijing started in April, 1989, and spread to major cities all around the country. The protesting students originally demanded an end to official corruption, but on evoking wide popular support from labor, intellectuals and even peasants, their demand developed into a call for political and democratic reforms. In the darkness before dawn on June 4, hundreds of armored military vehicles, escorted by tens of thousands of troops started moving in to Tiananmen Square to "clear" the square and to "restore order" in the capital, legitimizing its use of lethal force by claiming that a "counter-revolutionary rebellion" had occurred to launch "organized and premeditated political turmoil" with the aim of "overthrowing the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party and the socialist system in China." At least 4,000 people are officially reported to have been arrested throughout China in the aftermath of the violent crackdown, but in Beijing alone, several thousand people were believed to have been detained according to independent estimates. Many of them were taken to unknown destination and held without public trials. Many were executed during detention with a single bullet to the back of their heads. Yet, to this date, as Chinese Vice Premier Li Lanqing told Time Magazine recently, the communist regime still maintains that "not a single person was actually killed in Tiananmen Square." And as recently as January 31, 1994, two new national regulations on religious activities came into force, consolidating restrictions on religious activities in China, including prohibition on proselytizing by foreigners, setting up of religious schools or organizations, and banning of the entry of religious materials "whose contents are harmful to public interests in Chinese society." In view of such continued atrocities and persecution to believers and all citizens in China, we would like to initiate a National Prayer Request by asking your congregation to remember China and her people, including the rapidly growing number of Christians and Catholics there. On May 31 and June 5, we would ask you to include the following prayer items or a similar message in your service bulletin: "Please pray for China and her people -- for the development of democracy and respect for basic human rights, the spiritual needs and personal safety of religious believers under persecution, and wisdom for its leaders -- in memory of the victims of the Tiananmen Square Massacre." In addition, we also suggest your congregation to observe a brief moment of silence in commemoration of those who were killed during the Tiananmen Square massacre and subsequent crackdown five years ago, and encourage each of them to participate in local gatherings in your region to commemorate the fifth anniversary of the Tiananmen Massacre. We would like to hear from you if you would participate in our National Prayer Request so that we can estimate the level of participation. Please write to us at: Alliance of Hong Kong Chinese in the United States, P.O. Box 3768, Santa Clara, California 95055, U.S.A. Also, if you would like to request a copy of Amnesty International's March 1994 report on "Protestants and Catholics Detained Since 1993 in China," or obtain more information about AHKCUS, please contact Charles Mok, General Secretary, at the above address or by fax at 510-792-2579. Sincerely, Kenny K. Kwon, Chairperson Alliance of Hong Kong Chinese in the United States +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+ + Executive Editor: Weihe Guan Executive Moderator: Changqing Yang + +-------------------------------------------------------------------------+ + For subscription: mail "SUB CHINA-NT Your-First-Name Your-Last-Name" + + to LISTSERV@UGA (bitnet) or listserv@uga.cc.uga.edu (internet) + + For unsubscription: mail "UNSUB CHINA-NT" to the above e-address + + For back issues of CCF: + + anonymous ftp to: cnd.org[132.249.229.100]: pub/community/CCF + + gopher to cnd.org: 2. English Menu --> 13. 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