The Tiananmen Square protests of 1989, also known as the Tiananmen Square massacre and the June Fourth Incident[1] (in part to avoid confusion with two prior Tiananmen Square protests), were a series of demonstrations in and near Tiananmen Square in Beijing in the People's Republic of China (PRC) beginning on 15 April 1989. The movement used mainly non-violent methods and can be considered a case of civil resistance.[2] Led mainly by students and intellectuals, the protests occurred in the year that was to see the collapse of a number of communist governments in eastern Europe.
The protests were sparked by mass mourning over the death of former CPC General Secretary Hu Yaobang, a Party official who had been purged for his support to political liberalization.[3] By the eve of Hu's funeral, 100,000 people gathered at Tiananmen Square.[4] The demonstrations were begun by Beijing students to encourage continued economic reform and liberalization,[5] and evolved into a mass movement for political reform.[5] From Tiananmen Square they later expanded to the surrounding streets. Non-violent protests also occurred in cities throughout China, including Shanghai and Wuhan. Looting and rioting in various locations throughout China, including Xi'an and Changsha.[6]
The movement lasted seven weeks after Hu's death on 15 April. Premier Li Peng, a hardline conservative, declared martial law on May 20, but no military action took place until June 4, when the tanks and troops of the People's Liberation Army moved into the streets of Beijing, using live fire while proceeding to Tiananmen Square to clear the area of protestors. The exact number of civilian deaths is not known, and the majority of estimates range from several hundred to thousands.[7] There was widespread international condemnation of the government's use of force against the protesters.[5]
Following June 4, the government conducted widespread arrests of protesters and their supporters, cracked down on other protests around China, banned the foreign press from the country and strictly controlled coverage of the events in the domestic press. The Communist Party initiated a large-scale campaign to purge officials deemed sympathetic to the protests.[8] Several senior officials, most notably General Secretary Zhao Ziyang, were placed under house arrest...[Full Article]"The UnKnown Rebel" Tiananmen Square Protests
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNcuDkozfOI
Uploaded by richiestreasure on Aug 23, 2007
According to wiki, a series of demonstrations led by students, intellectuals, and labour activists in Communist China between April 15, 1989 and June 4, 1989. While the protests lacked a unified cause or leadership, participants were generally critical of the ruling Chinese Communist Party and voiced complaints ranging from minor criticisms to calls for full-fledged democracy and the establishment of broader freedoms. The demonstrations centred on Tiananmen Square in Beijing, but large-scale protests also occurred in cities throughout China, including Shanghai, which stayed peaceful throughout the protests. In Beijing, the resulting military crackdown on the protesters by the PRC government left many civilians dead or injured. The toll ranges from 200--300 (PRC government figures), to 400--800 by the New York Times, and to 2,000--3,000 (Chinese student associations and Chinese Red Cross), although the PRC government asserts and most independent observers agree that the majority of these deaths were not in the square itself but rather in the streets leading to the square.[1]
Following the violence, the regime conducted widespread arrests to suppress protestors and their supporters, cracked down on other protests around China, banned the foreign press from the country and strictly controlled coverage of the events in the Chinese state-run press. Members of the Party who had publicly sympathized with the protesters were purged, with several high-ranking members placed under house arrest, such as General Secretary Zhao Ziyang. The violent suppression of the Tiananmen Square protest caused widespread international condemnation of the Communist regime.
