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An eerie resemblance

Consider the following series of events. An authoritarian government's corruption leads to public dissatisfaction. Heavy-handed action by the authorities in public view leads to civil protests. When the protesters refuse to disband, the authorities call out the military. The protesters don't back down, so the government gives the order to deal harshly with the "traitors." A large number of people are killed in cold blood. In the aftermath of the incident, the government utterly refuses to accept responsibility for its aggressive over-reaction.

The government does not apologize or back down from its cowardly and knee-jerk decision to resort to violence. Years pass, and party propaganda seeks to lay the blame on the protesters. The history of the incident is gradually re-written.

This sequence of events approximates what occurred during and after the 228 Incident. The year was 1947. The party was the Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT).

A certain resemblance to events in Tiananmen Square in June 1989 is unmistakable. Should one be surprised?

Stephen Carter
Taichung
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