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 Fifteenth
anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre
The use of the term "4 June" (Liu Si) is still banned
in the press and on the Internet
The programmes of the US TV news network CNN
were frequently cut off inside China on 4 June. Each
time the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre
was mentioned or reported on, the screen went black on
TV sets in hotel rooms and in the homes of foreigners,
who are the only people legally allowed to watch the
station.
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02 June 2004
On 4 June 1989, Chinese army tanks were crushing the
student revolt on Beijing's Tiananmen Square, sounding
a death-knell for public democratic protest in China.
Fifteen years later, the use of the term "4 June" is
still banned in the press and on the Internet, and
journalists and Internet users are still suffering the
consequences of the censorship and repression
introduced after the "Beijing Spring."
Over the last 15 years, more than 130 journalists and
Internet users have been jailed, of whom 43 directly
participated in "Beijing Spring." Among them, three
are still behind bars : Yu Dongyue, an art critic with
News of Liuyang, who was arrested on 23 May 1989 and
sentenced to 20 years in prison ; Chen Yanbin,
co-editor of the underground magazine Tielu, arrested
in 1990 and sentenced to 15 years in prison, and Liu
Jingsheng, a journalist with the underground magazine
Tansuo, arrested on 28 May 1992 and sentenced to 15
years in prison.
In addition, Internet webmaster Huang Qi has been in
jail since 3 June 2000 for having allowed articles
about the Tiananmen Square massacre to be posted on
his website, which was hosted in the United States
after being initially banned in China. He received a
five-year prison term for "subversion" and "inciting
the overthrow of state power."
Chinese authorities recently put several human rights
activists under house arrest, thereby preventing them
from publicly commemorating the 15th anniversary of
the bloody crackdown against the Tiananmen Square
demonstrators. Among them was Liu Xiaobo, an ardent
defender of freedom of expression and author of
numerous articles on cyber-dissidence in China.
Moreover, Dr. Jiang Yanyong, the military hospital
doctor known for exposing the severity of the SARS
epidemic in Beijing, was "exiled" to Xinjiang province
for asking government officials, last March, to
reconsider their position on the massacre of 4 June
1989. In his reply, Prime Minister Wen Jiabao
explained that the Communist Party had merely acted to
preserve the country's unity and stability.
This year in Hong Kong, the pressure has intensified
against journalists and human rights activists who are
urging the public to demonstrate on the occasion of 4
June. Unidentified individuals have been tearing down
the posters announcing this commemorative event.
Even today, any journalist who dares to question the
official version of the events of 4 June-the regime
still considers that the Army's intervention was "appropriate"-or
attempts to commemorate the "Beijing Spring," is
taking a risk.
The Internet is being subjected to the same type of
censorship. In May 2003, Reporters without Borders
established that the use of the term "4 June" (Liu Si)
was prohibited on Chinese websites and in chat rooms.
Filters set up by the authorities systematically block
any messages referring to the massacre.
Since 4 June 1989, Chinese authorities have been
closely monitoring foreign correspondents, especially
their relations with dissidents. In the last 10 years,
more than 40 foreign journalists have been subjected
to peremptory questioning for having met with
activists associated with the student movement or the
Chinese Democratic Party. Foreign media journalists
will be under very close scrutiny as 4 June draws
closer. For example, Beijing's city hall passed a new
regulation in mid-April 2004 prohibiting any sort of
gathering in the vicinity of Tiananmen Square. Despite
the promises made by authorities before Beijing was
chosen as the site for the 2008 Olympic Games,
Reporters without Borders has noted no significant
improvement in working conditions for foreign
journalists.
On the occasion of this 15th anniversary of the
Tiananmen Square Massacre, Reporters without Borders
is asking the Chinese government :
to release the 27 journalists and 61 cyber-dissidents
currently behind bars, three of whom were jailed for
taking part in the 1989 democratic movement ;
to abolish censorship relating to the events of 4 June
1989 in the press and on the Internet ;
to put an end to the harassment and vexatious measures
(house arrest, shadowing, wiretaps, etc.) inflicted
upon journalists who participated in the "Beijing
Spring" ;
to authorize exiled journalists and dissidents to
return to China in complete safety ;
to allow the Chinese and international press to report
on dissident group activities.
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