6-3-98
6-4-89
Remembering
China has a lot of number days. There is 10-10, or the double ten, the original "Chinese fourth of July" to commemorate the fall of the Qing Dynasty on October 10, 1911. It is still the national holiday in Taiwan, Republic of China. There is 5-4 which refers to the demonstrations in Beijing for democracy and modernization that occurred in May 1919. There is 2-2-8, a date of infamy in Taiwan that marks the day, Februrary 28, 1947, when the KMT began a slaughter and purge of native Taiwanese who protested the corruption and incompetence of the mainland government who took over Taiwan after the end of World War II.
And there is 6-4, referring to the day when the People's Liberation Army drove into Beijing to kill the citizens who had been protesting peacefully for months for a less corrupt and more democratic system. This was in 1989 and this month marks the ninth anniversary of the event.
In Taiwan, 228 is now a national holiday to remember the massacre and purge that happened then. It's wrongness is acknowledged by the government and monuments to the unjustly killed have been erected.
The current Communist Chinese government still says the June 4th massacre was needed as necessary (if they even admit it happened. Remember Chi Haotian, their top army man, came to the US and said there was no massacre at all). How long will it be before June 4th becomes a national holiday in mainland China? It has been nine years since the event. It took 50 years for 228 to become a holiday in Taiwan. My guess it won't take fifty years for the June 4th holiday to be put in place.
June 4th is the ninth anniversary of the Beijing Massacre, also known as the Tiananmen Square massacre. On this anniversary someone from China News Digest will post a series of postings to the soc.culture.china newsgroup that appeared at that time. The posts tell the story of the massacre as it unfolded. The typos and misspellings of the originals are present. I reformatted these originally text messages. I also deleted the e-mail addresses of the original authors. These addresses are most likely obsolete by now. You can use DejaNews if you want to look up these messages.
12 posts are collected here to be read
It's gut-wrenching to read these missives today. It is a time capsule of course, yet eternal.
What is written in these posts may be as accurate as anything we know for sure about those days in June of 89. It is still a taboo subject and mainland citizens have been jailed for trying to investigate just what happened and how many were killed. The book Red China Blues by Jan Wong is a good read and tells about the details of the massacre well.
Web sites also keep the memory of what happened alive also. Warning The sites linked to below have links to graphic pictures of the victims of the violence in Beijing that night.
You can start at The CND 6-4 Memorial Site
It has lots of links.
The Support Democracy in China Site's 6-4 Memorial. This site has hundreds of pictures.
A site called China, Hong Kong Chinese Democracy and the Future has pictures and writings--a good site to look at. Warning this link goes directly to a page with a picture of a dead bloody victim of the June 4th massacre. Here is this link.
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: Slaughter Is Going On In Beijing !!!
Date: Sat Jun 3 13:20:10 EDT 1989
****** B L O O D S H E D !!! ***** B L O O D S H E D !!! *******
CBS, NBC, ABC hourly special reports from Beijing this morning, troops are advancing to TAM Square and fire at citizens near in front of Beijing hotel and north side of TAM Square, according to the report from four hospitals, by 1:00pm (EST), at least 32 dead and 1,100 wounded, newsmans could hear rifles firing in downtown Beijing, the situation is extremely serious and becoming worse and worse. Beijing citizens are still marching into TAM Square and trying to stop troops, students leaders are pleading with PLA soldiers to stop firing at people. Foreign newsmans are abso lutely not allowed to take any photo nor televise the scene, but international phone calls are still available. The troops charged citizen/students with stealing the guns from troops' trucks and fired at troops first as the excuse to start final push towards TAM Square. Beijing people are extremely angry and more and more citizens are going out on streets to protest bloodshed.
I cannot write more, my fingers are twisting, my heart is break ing, tears are dripping for our homeland, our fellow students and our people.
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: Midnight Massacre In Beijing !!!
Date: Sat Jun 3 15:46:45 EDT 1989
Gun Fire Heard Everywhere In Beijing For Many Hours
Major TV's hourly special reports this afternoon, according to the statistics from ONLY A FEW hospitals, as of 6:30am (Beijing time), 90 people have died in the ongoing midnight Beijing massa cre, thousands injured. "Gun fire is heard everywhere in Beijing for many many hours", CBS newsman in Beijing said on the phone.
Thousands of thousands Beijing citizens fill streets and alleys in the midnight Beijing time, they are shouting and crying "how can the government do this?" "how the government with blood on hands can survive?"...; "I have never seen people such angry", said a foreign newsman.
It can be clearly heard (on the phone relayed by TV), people are roaring and ambulances are rushing to bloody sites.
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: !!! Beijing Massacre (Da4 Tu2 Sa1) !!!
Date: 3 Jun 89 22:52:19 GMT
!!! Beijing Massacre (Da4 Tu2 Sa1) !!!
Chinese government and PLA are killing Beijing city (Tu2 Cheng2)! Recall the Nanjing Massacre did by Japanese army in 30's!
As reported from the TV, PLA has fully controlled the TAM Square and are firing at whoever across the street. The troops are trying to control the whole city and even coming to the people staying on side streets.
We called back Beijing an hour ago and was told that:
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
1. many deaths were shot from their back when escaping,
2. soldiers even shot people hiding in grass,
3. some yards were filled up with bodies killed by the PLA, and
4. the total number killed is much larger than TV reports...
Tomorrow, Li Peng etc. will lie to the whole world about:
1. "defense" (Zi4 Wei4 Huan2 Ji1) suppressing the counter revolutionary riot after a long-term tolerance, by showing some damage to the troop,
2. celebrating their victory taking up TAM S. before dawn and show their power to enforce the martial law to scare people,
3. persecuting the demonstrators...
This is the darkest moment in the history!
We do not recognize the Li Peng government because it is a bloody and dirty dictatorship,
Li Peng etc. should be sentenced and executed by an international court for this massacre!
Our condemn about the bloodshed has been faxed to the Secretary of the United Nation, President of USA and the US Congress...
But we do need more powerful methods to fight with the Li Peng government!
-- Chinese Students in the New Mexico State University at Las Cruces
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: news
Date: 3 Jun 89 21:17:55 GMT
Organization: University of Colorado, Denver
Long line long line of troops making their way silently along the perifery of the square. The square itself is still in darkness because the light is turned out. However, several fires some of them quite large have been lit by the students who are still camping there. There are so far enough soldiers being seeing pass by that at least the enormous square could be ringed with soldier to full size. The square is quite now. The only noise is the occasional outbreakof applause ,applause by the people as they watch the people's army passing by.
The mail strike force seen are columns of 500 trucks. There perhaps 8000 combat-ready troops have broken loos . They are heading down to east-west exits of ChangAn Ave. They could be reaching the square in minutes. These is the biggest enforcement since the fight began. In the city the fighting is continuing. There are seven military vechiles on fire right near the Zoo. Huge rock throwing fights are going on in the streets. People are breaking up the pavement to have more rocks to throw at the soldiers. It is very hard to estimate the casulties. 28 were confirmed dead. John Sheahan got a report indicating more than 100 were dead and several hundred wounded. Bette Bao Lord,wife of former US embassdor to China said her friends told her the doctors and nurses said they can not help because there are so many of them. The goverment is about to put up a statement to justify the killing by saying the people's army is now forced to counterattack the forces that have staged a counter- revolutionary rebellion in an attempt to overthrow the gov of PRC and the communist system. This ti the statement by which the gov dispite of its power struggle at top is trying to justify the killing of the civilian people by the people's army.
The students now are retreating saying the life can no longer be lost. Our dear fellow students!
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: (2) Beijing Massacre (Da4 Tu2 Sa1)
Date: 4 Jun 89 05:20:56 GMT
Latest News from Telephone Call to Beijing 11:30 pm (Eastern Time):
1. The parking lot of the Fuxing Hospital of Beijing is fully covered by bodies killed the by troops, aged from 3 to over 60.
2. None of the doctors and nurses is allowed to rescue the wounded people because they are so called counter-revolutionary rioters.
3. A group of people (about 300) were standing on a intersection bridge near Fuxing Men, shouting to the PLA: "Please do not hurt the students!" Immediately, these people were shot by automatic machine guns.
4. Whoever appears on the balcony or in the window of his/her home, shouting "Please do not shoot the student...", is also shot by the PLA soldiers.
5. All the shops along the streets are ordered to closed to prevent the so called counter-revolutionaries from escaping from the shooting.
Beijing, the heart of our home country, is dead!!! It is killed by the counter-people gang!
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: a phone call to Pekin Univ. informs more than 500 are killed.
Date: 3 Jun 89 21:16:26 GMT
One hour ago(22h-3/6 paris time), we phoned directly to the research student's union of Pekin Univ. We are told that more than 500 peoples are dead and much more are injured or arrested. However, the French radio always says 38 dead and 200 injured. Most of the victimes are the students.
By the phone call, the army have wholly occuped TAM square. All the rest students are arrested. The army opens fire, even with machine gun, to anybody who try to get close to the TAM square. Now, in the TAM square, the blood is flowing like river. Some red-croix doctors who try to save the injured students are also killed by the army. We are told that the machine gun sound can be hearded coming from the south of pekin.
The independent chinese student's union in Frence calls on that all the students phone to relatives/friends in china to inform them what have happened in Pekin. A protest demonstration against the suppressing will be possibly hold tomorrow in Paris. Many students have gone to the education service of the chinese ambassad tonight.
Wang Qing.
23h-3/6 Paris-ORSAY.
Sun Jun 4 89 Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Beijing Horrors
1. The troops moved in more than an hour BEFORE the deadline and opened fire. People fled into alleyways along the square as soliders sitting on dozens of armored personnel carriers fired in their direction, hitting some residents as they watched from their windows. A student, his feorhead was creased by a bullet, said:" I see with my own eyes four people died. They fired a gun from the top of the tank at the people. "My sister was sitting in our front room; now she has a bullet in her body,"another young man said. As students were fleeing the square, seven were reported to have been crushed under the wheels of an armored personnel carrier.
2. Although it could not be determined what troops were shooting at, there was nearly constant gunfire. Gunfire echoed around the city. The smell of gunpowder was in the air and smoke wafted along the Avennue of Eternal Peace. Troops fired into the parking lot of one of Beijing 's biggest hotels , aiming at protesters who had fled from the square nearby. Plainclothes police snipped public telephone lines in square and wend from room to room in the Beijing Hotel, the largest public building near the square, seizing film from photographers.
3. .... After a seemingly endless minute, a young female student stood up and stared to run toward the troops, according to a Western diplomat who said he wittessed the scene. "They shoot her, I counted six shots, but I am not sure they they all shot her. I know she caught one in the face." Two male students rushed to her. One was shot in the arm, and the other in the chest.
Sun Jun 4 14:39:44 1989
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: Remember June 4, 1989!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Although I can hardly organized this message, I would like to annouce the lastest news this morning.
1) Yesterday 11pm(Pittsburgh), I called my wife in Beijing University of Iron and Steel Technology. She told me that some of her schoolmates were in the TAM square last night, still a number of them have not been back to the University at that time yet. Over the phone, another friend told me that the death toll could be thousands! Millitary troops were on the forth cirle road and Xueyuanlu Road and shooting into the air constantly. He told me that those troops would enter every university campus today. Soldiers shot at the back of people who are trying to escape! They shot indiscriminately, including child and the old.
2) I monitored Redio Beijing(Chinese and English Services both). In its Chinese language service, a very brief message is like this: TROOPS CARRYING THE ORDER OF MARTIAL LAW HAVE SUCCESSFULLY CALMED DOWN A COUNTER REVOLUTIONARY RIOT. But in its English service. The broadcast was unusual. "June 4, 1989. The most tragic events happened in the Chinese Capital Beijing. Thousands of innocent civilians were killed by millitary troops as they forced their way into the center of the City. Among the killed, there were our collegues of Radio Beijing. Even after the millitary convey forced into the crowds, they shot indiscriminately." After that they returned to normal official broadcasting.
3) Death toll estimated by foreign news medias was very small than that reported from our home. It is reported by BBC that the World Economic Heralds reported the figure as 2,600! (not include injury)
4) Late news from Radio Australia: HongKong legislative authorities would held an emergency meeting at 9:00 am local time today. Officials told reporters that they were terribly angry. They said today's Beijing would be tomorrow's HongKong. New Zealang officials at Australia told Australian government that New Zealand will invite the Chinese ambassador at New Zealand and annouce their condemnation. Australians have decided to cancel a major inter-governmetal formal visit to China as a condamnation.
5) Killing is still continueing. Now it is mid-night of June 5 in Beijing. BBC reported the killing is still contiueing in the mid afternoon in June 4 there. There were 8 tanks in the middle of the TAM square. Before them, a new slogan leaving by the students reads: "Li Peng, You Will Never Find Peace!" It was writen in blood! Early in the morning of June 4, workers were told to go to their work units and listen to the official news release. The students are calling for a nation wide general strike. It seems a little bit successful in Shanghai where traffic has already been jammed. In the afternoon June 4, a group of people leading to the square were shot by the soldiers there, more that 8 people died. Gun fires are still being heard over Beijing City scatteredly.
6) Radio Taiwan reported yesterday the death toll is around one-handred. It reported some detail confrontations. In western Beijing where killing was started, a group of students were facing a troop of fully armed soldies. After a while, one of the students went to the front to try to talk to the soldiers, he received belts and sticks in whipping! Then other students moved forward(maybe they only try to rescue that young man!), soldies slashed bullets towards them. More that 20 young were fallen on the ground!
7) BBC this morning about the final confrontation: At about 2:50 am troops lead by tanks arrived in the central square. They went first directly to the Chinese Liberty Statue(The daughter of democracy), and smashed her. Soldiers gave the deadline of 4:30am to warn the students and workers (including the four hunger strikers, Ho Dejian is one of them) to leave. Students vowed to stay until they died. Worker did not agree. The hunger strikers said they would be the last to leave. Eventually, at 5:50 am, these last thousands of workers, students, left, hand in hand, griefly, singing the song of Internationale. As tanks and armored troop carriers moving to surround the students in the central square, those damn vehicles dashed over the students' shelters even there were people in it!!!!!!
Crying, is our motherland! Crying, are our mothers, our brother and sisters! Crying, our students and scholars in alien countries! Where is the hope of our nation!
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: News -- 4am PDT from HK
Keywords: massacre
Date: 4 Jun 89 12:07:47 GMT
Lines: 93
HK TVs and radios are running continuous reports on the Beijing massacre.
Following is the latest (4am PDT, HK Time 7pm, Beijing Time 8pm). Comments are in brackets.
Casualties
----------
Up to this point, at least 2,600 killed, uncountable many wounded. The
official Chinese media said 1,100 soldiers were wounded. But doctors
said
no patients they treated were wearing army uniform. [If this number is
true,
the casualties for civilians would be much much more.)
Ambulances were running all night. However, there were no more ambulance at this point. It's not clear if the government made the ban or not. People are carrying the badly wounded people to the hospitals on foot or by bikes. Also doctors are not allowed to do operations; thus many wounded are expected to die.
As indicated from the pictures, most of the killed were bare-handed. A picture shows a woman's body with lots of big bullet holes.
The Army
--------
The army is believed to be the 27th army, Yang's army. Machine gun
fires
can still be heard once a while. [After killing so many unarmed
civilians,
the soldiers may experience psychological break down and become crazy
killers, especially stirred by government lies. Rumor said that Deng
(or Li
Peng?) recently said if killing 200,000 people could exchange for 20
years of
stability in China, he would do it.]
At the early stage of the massacre, a tank was burnt by the people (it was filmed by the Japanese reporters). The two soldiers escaped and got beaten by the people. Later the citizens called the ambulance to take them to hospital.
The Students and TAMS
---------------------
When the troops advanced to TAMS, the students decided to retreat.
But all the exits were blocked. The army used loud speakers to warn the
student to leave. However, machine guns were fired immediately and
left no
time for the students to retreat. Offcial Chinese TV shows that
now TAMS has been cleared and soldiers are cleaning up the scene. All
tents
were gone. It was reported that the tanks ran over the tents during the
assault. There were 7 tanks in TAMS. It's not known at this point how
many students are killed and arrested.
The heros
---------
Depsite the death threat, Beijing citizens keep going out to face the
troops.
One man said in the phone to Hong Kong: "I'll go out after my last
cigarette."
Civilians are being chased by soldiers and shot. Even those who came
out to
try to identify the bodies of their beloved ones were merciless shot.
The oldest killed was an over 70 year-old woman.
Reporters
---------
All reporters (HK and foreign) are now being monitored and can't make
phone
calls out. During the early phone conversations, many reporters were
crying
and too emotional to talk. Some were arrested and beaten.
Other cities
------------
HK students are trying all means to inform the people in other cities
about
the massacre. Demonstrations have broken out in many cities. [Since the
situation is getting worse, if you have relatives in China, please call
and
inform them a.s.a.p. The government is acting real crazy and may cut
phone calls later.]
HK students & HK
-----------------
20 students went to Beijing to support the students. Two were reported
missing during the assault, but they were finally found with wounds.
They couldn't believe the way the troops treated
the people. One student was gunned down right next to one of the HK
students.
They thought they would die for sure.
Huge demonstration is being held in Hong Kong. People are wearing black
cloths in the protest to mourn the death.
HK's Asian TV news crew was the last reporter crew
to leave TAMS when the tanks were advancing into the square.
Government lies
---------------
The offcial Chinese TV [HK TVs are showing their broadcast, and I heard
the following through the phone] broadcasted the speechs by high-ranking
military officials praising the soldiers' effort to break the
"counter-revolunary" riot and protecting the capital. They said their
operations were also praised by Beijing citizens and the STUDENTS.
Sun Jun 4 21:26:05 1989
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: ONE DAY AFTER BLOODSHEDDING
1) Lastest news showed that Beijing is still a dangerous site. BBC reported just an hour ago, troops were patrolling up and down the central city firing guns totally randomly to side buildings. It is reported that a 4 year old girl was killed. And a worker riding bike to go to work was shot died. Most of the markets and shops were closed. And there are few local common citizens walking out on the street. Traffic were rare. Gun shooting was still in the air.
2) The students are calling for a general strike on Monday. And some other students are protecting Beijing University from PLA's invade.
3) The governments have released some messages. It says that Beijing City is still grave. And the victory over the counter-revolutionary riot is still a preliminary one. Beijing official sources said that the death over the night was 318 and with 600 injury.
4) It is said that the order for the final bloodshedding crackdown was given by Deng Xiaoping, who is believed to be live corpse in the hospital.
S T O P K I L L I N G !
T A O(2) H U A N(2) X U E(4) Z H A I(4)!
W H O P L A Y S W I T H F I R E, W H O I S D O O M E D D I E!
T H R A W A W A Y T H E N A Z Y C O M M U N I S T M O N S T E R!
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: Death Toll
Date: 4 Jun 89 06:36:09 GMT
200 are dead, 500 are dead, much more are dead. I will never believe these numbers. Shocking operations reported in CNN news says 'THERE ARE SPECIAL UNITS IN THE ARMY. THEY COLLECT THE DEAD BODYS TO BA BAO SHAN FOR IMMEDIATE CREMATION TO KEEP THE DEATH COUNT LOW!!' Hong Kong reportors estimated thousands are killed. Don't believe the numbers reported. It is far smaller than the real one!! What a CCP brutal action!! What a plot!!
Newsgroups: soc.culture.china
Subject: Eyewitness report from Beijing Massacre ( 10:50 Pm 6/4)
Keywords: MUCH worse than you can image.
Organization: EE/CS Dept. U.C. San Diego
We just received a phone call from Beijing. The caller is living near Mou-Xue-De where most killing happened.
1) The killing is MUCH MUCH worse than you can think of. The bullet is explosive kind ( Zha4 Zi3). Five of his neighbours were killed while sleeping at home.
2) He visited Fu-Xing Hospital where he saw blood was flooding in the hallway. The youngest killed is seven years old. The youngest wounded is 3 years old.
3) The killers are 27th army. Some of them were Sino-Vietnam war veterans and they killed our people very effectively (i.e. to shoot right in the head and heart). As they were shooting at the people, they laughed and yelled at the people, "Pekingnese (bei3 jing1 de0), show your guts!! (Ni3 Men2 Bu2 Shi4 You2 Zhong3 De0 Ma1)".
4) The 38th army came in later on. They saw this horrible scene and refused to move. The helicopters from 27th forced them to fire at people and said that was the order from Central Military Committee. The 38th replyed that they ONLY took orders from their own commander and their commander did not order them to fire. Later on, some of 38th soldiers fought bare-handedly with 27th to protect Beijing people.
5) A wounded 27th soldier told the doctors that the order was from Central Military Committee, saying that "We would rather destroy the whole Beijing city in order to keep the stability of the nation".
6) In the daytime, anybody who dared to complain loudly to the soldiers was shot by them.
7) The soldiers in 38th abandoned their tanks volunteerly and let the people burn them.
Also see China News Digest's CND Special Issue in Memory of June 4th Massacre
