Hong Kongers are seeking innovative ways to commemorate the victims of China’s Tiananmen Square Massacre after authorities banned an annual vigil and vowed to stamp out any protests on the anniversary today.
Discussion of tanks and troops quelling democracy protesters in Beijing on June 4, 1989, is all but forbidden in mainland China and there is heavy censorship of the images from the crackdown so well known in the rest of the world.
However, in Hong Kong the date has been remembered with huge candlelight vigils in Victoria Park for the past three decades.
Photo: AP
Last year’s vigil was banned for the first time because of the COVID-19 pandemic, but thousands of people defied police and rallied anyway.
This year’s vigil has been banned again, ostensibly because of the pandemic.
Officials have also warned that the National Security Law could be wielded against Tiananmen mourners.
So Hong Kongers are getting creative.
Local artist Kacey Wong (黃國才) has collected hundreds of spent candle stubs from previous vigils and plans to give them to residents tonight.
“It is time to redistribute them to the people of Hong Kong so they can collect them, preserve them and put them in a safe place,” Wong told reporters.
Wong has previously turned the candles into artwork, but will give them away this year at two stores of local clothing brand Chickeeduck, which sells pro-democracy merchandise.
“Each burned candle contains a person’s mourning toward those who sacrificed themselves in pursuit of democracy, as well as one’s longing for democracy, a mix of complex emotions,” Wong said. “It’s a testimony of hope... I hope they can continue to shine the way towards freedom and democracy.”
Historically, the Tiananmen vigil candles are lit at 8:09pm — representing 1989.
A vigil organiser, former Hong Kong legislator Albert Ho (何俊仁) — who is serving a prison term — said that Hong Kongers could light candles or shine mobile phone lights in their local neighborhoods.
“We can regard the whole of Hong Kong as Victoria Park,” he told the South China Morning Post before he was sentenced last week for attending previous democracy protests.
Social media presents another avenue.
Artist Tozer Pak (白雙全) has called on residents to write the numbers six and four — representing June 4 — on light switches to mark Tiananmen every time they turn them on.
“Guard the truth and refuse to forget,” Pak wrote on Facebook.
REVENGE: Trump said he had the support of the Syrian government for the strikes, which took place in response to an Islamic State attack on US soldiers last week The US launched large-scale airstrikes on more than 70 targets across Syria, the Pentagon said on Friday, fulfilling US President Donald Trump’s vow to strike back after the killing of two US soldiers. “This is not the beginning of a war — it is a declaration of vengeance,” US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth wrote on social media. “Today, we hunted and we killed our enemies. Lots of them. And we will continue.” The US Central Command said that fighter jets, attack helicopters and artillery targeted ISIS infrastructure and weapon sites. “All terrorists who are evil enough to attack Americans are hereby warned
‘POLITICAL LOYALTY’: The move breaks with decades of precedent among US administrations, which have tended to leave career ambassadors in their posts US President Donald Trump’s administration has ordered dozens of US ambassadors to step down, people familiar with the matter said, a precedent-breaking recall that would leave embassies abroad without US Senate-confirmed leadership. The envoys, career diplomats who were almost all named to their jobs under former US president Joe Biden, were told over the phone in the past few days they needed to depart in the next few weeks, the people said. They would not be fired, but finding new roles would be a challenge given that many are far along in their careers and opportunities for senior diplomats can
Seven wild Asiatic elephants were killed and a calf was injured when a high-speed passenger train collided with a herd crossing the tracks in India’s northeastern state of Assam early yesterday, local authorities said. The train driver spotted the herd of about 100 elephants and used the emergency brakes, but the train still hit some of the animals, Indian Railways spokesman Kapinjal Kishore Sharma told reporters. Five train coaches and the engine derailed following the impact, but there were no human casualties, Sharma said. Veterinarians carried out autopsies on the dead elephants, which were to be buried later in the day. The accident site
RUSHED: The US pushed for the October deal to be ready for a ceremony with Trump, but sometimes it takes time to create an agreement that can hold, a Thai official said Defense officials from Thailand and Cambodia are to meet tomorrow to discuss the possibility of resuming a ceasefire between the two countries, Thailand’s top diplomat said yesterday, as border fighting entered a third week. A ceasefire agreement in October was rushed to ensure it could be witnessed by US President Donald Trump and lacked sufficient details to ensure the deal to end the armed conflict would hold, Thai Minister of Foreign Affairs Sihasak Phuangketkeow said after an ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting in Kuala Lumpur. The two countries agreed to hold talks using their General Border Committee, an established bilateral mechanism, with Thailand
RSS