33rd Anniversary of Tiananmen Incident, China Says "Clear Conclusion Already... 'Political Turmoil'"

Zhao Lijian, Spokesperson of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] As the Tiananmen Incident marks its 33rd anniversary on the 4th, the Chinese government has stated that it has already reached a clear conclusion regarding the matter.

At a regular briefing on the 2nd, Zhao Lijian, spokesperson for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, responded to questions about any measures regarding the demands from the families of the Tiananmen Incident victims for a truth investigation, apology, and compensation by stating, "The Chinese government has already reached a clear conclusion about the political turmoil that occurred in the late 1980s."

The Tiananmen Incident, which occurred in 1989, refers to a series of events where citizens who took to the streets demanding anti-corruption and reforms were violently suppressed by the Chinese People's Liberation Army, resulting in many casualties. After the death of Hu Yaobang, General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, in April, student protests were triggered, and a large-scale attack was launched against protesters who were occupying Tiananmen Square on June 4th, which is why it is also called '6·4.'

Since then, public discussion of this event has been taboo in China. In November last year, the Chinese Communist Party adopted the Third Historical Resolution ("Resolution of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party on the Major Achievements and Historical Experience of the Party's Century-long Struggle"), which described the Tiananmen Incident as "political turmoil."

The resolution evaluated, "In the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Soviet Union collapsed and Eastern Europe underwent drastic changes," and stated, "With the support and incitement of anti-communist and anti-socialist hostile forces, the major international trend and minor domestic trend caused severe political turmoil in our country during the spring to summer of 1989." It further analyzed the suppression of the protests by saying, "The Party and government relied on the people and took a clear stance against the turmoil, upholding the socialist state regime and the fundamental interests of the people."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.