Tiananmen fading from memory

In a small auditorium in the basement of the Taipei City Council building a handful of Taiwan's political elite, scholars and a former student activist gathered to commemorate the 11th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre yesterday.

While the focus of this year's gathering looked forward to the next 10 years and China's future democratization, there was plenty of reflection on Taiwan's own political climate and why the anniversary of the massacre passed virtually unnoticed in Taipei.

"Every year on June 4 it seems like the whole world remembers and has not forgotten," said Chen Yi-chang (陳義揚) head of the Mainland Democratic Movement Support Group (血脈相連大陸民主運動後援會).

Chen went on to confess to the half-full auditorium that, while the world remembers the Tiananmen massacre, keeping a memorial going in Taiwan has been difficult. Last year at the 10th anniversary he had nearly decided to call it quits and disband, he said. But continued support from a loyal few had kept the event going.

In attendance was Taipei City Mayor Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), DPP Lawmaker Shih Ming-teh (施明德), Vice Chairman of the Mainland Affairs Council Chen Ming-tong (陳明通), former June 4 student activist Wuer Kaixi (吾爾開希), Ruan Ming (阮銘) former secretary to Chinese Premier Hu Yaobang and others.

The ceremony included a moment of silence and the laying of flowers on a memorial altar. Artists sang at the memorial, including Wang Cheng (王誠) who strummed a roaring rendition of China rock star Cui Jian's (崔健) "Nothing to my name" (一無所有) a song popular during the period of the Tiananmen square demonstration that ended so bloodily.

"I hope that someday the communist party will be like this song," Wang said, indicating the party would lose power and influence.

While the mayor started the memorial by looking forward to the next 11 years, many who stood and spoke looked back. Some reflected on the recent shift in power from the KMT after over 50 years of one-party rule, others reflected on how little Taiwan understands about how far it has come.

Wuer Kaixi said that Tiananmen had become an inconvenience.

"Some people are afraid it will hurt their chances of going to China and hurt opportunities of invest in China," Wuer Kaixi said.

Ruan Ming said that if Taiwan wishes to further influence China's democratization it should do more to cherish the democracy it already has because only that would bring more democracy to China and security to Taiwan. "The people of Taiwan should stand up for their own democracy and freedom," he said.

Shih Ming-teh, a regular attendee at the memorial also spoke of Taiwan's democracy.

"The thing I was happiest about was not the DPP's success but the power of the people," Shih said referring to the recent inauguration of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁). "We have witnessed that democracy is not something for westerners but something for yellow skinned people as well."

But much like the limited attention the memorial received many people in Taiwan have yet to understand human rights and democracy, said Chai Song-lin (柴松林), head of the Chinese Association for Human Rights. "Don't think that just because we have just witnessed a peaceful transfer of power that we have human rights," he said.