China on Thursday blasted US Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s comments on the deadly crackdown on protesters in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square 37 years ago as “smearing” the country’s political system, as Taiwan told China to face up to history.
The events on and around the central Beijing square on June 4, 1989, when Chinese troops opened fire to end student-led pro-democracy protests, are not publicly discussed in China, and the anniversary is not officially marked.
Rubio said on Wednesday that Beijing’s censorship could not erase memories of the military assault.
“Those who sacrificed to uphold their unalienable rights of free expression and peaceful assembly will be vindicated someday,” he said in a statement that followed past practice of the United States’ top diplomat marking the anniversary.
Speaking in Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao Ning said the government had long reached “a clear conclusion” about the “political turmoil that occurred in the late 1980s,” reiterating Beijing’s stance.
“China is strongly dissatisfied and firmly opposed to the US distorting historical facts, smearing China’s political system and development path,” Mao said of Rubio’s statement.
‘Pretext’ of democracy and human rights; defending ‘path of socialism’
She also accused the US of interfering in China’s internal affairs “on the pretext of” democracy and human rights, and defended Beijing’s “path of socialism with Chinese characteristics.”
Public commemorations of the crackdown take place in overseas cities, including Taipei, where senior Taiwanese government leaders often use the anniversary to criticize China, which views democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory.
Writing on his Facebook page, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said a truly great country should not “blindly believe in military might or engage in militarism.”
“I sincerely hope that China can face up to the June 4 incident of 37 years ago, acknowledge the truth, soothe the pain, and open the door to reconciliation and dialogue,” he added.
China’s Taiwan Affairs Office did not respond to a request seeking comment on Lai’s remarks.
China calls Lai a “separatist” and has rebuffed multiple offers of talks from him. He says only the people of Taiwan can decide their future.
Pro-democracy demonstrations brutally crushed
Chinese tanks rolled into Tiananmen Square before dawn on June 4, 1989, crushing weeks of pro-democracy demonstrations by students and workers.
China has never provided a full death toll, but rights groups and witnesses say the figure could run into thousands. China blamed the protests on counter-revolutionaries seeking to overthrow the ruling Communist Party.
In Hong Kong, where a candlelight vigil in the city’s Victoria Park once drew tens of thousands of people each year, public remembrances came to an end after Beijing imposed a national security law in 2020.
Such vigils were once hailed as a symbol of the Asian financial hub’s relative freedom compared to mainland China, but the anniversary in the city is now marked by a heavy police presence and few visible remembrance activities.
Several vigils were still expected to take place in a number of cities around the world on Thursday, including four in Germany and one in Australia.
