Advocacy groups gathered at Taipei’s Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall on Sunday night to commemorate the 34th anniversary of the June 4th Massacre, also known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The crowd dedicated 64 seconds of silence at 8:09 p.m. to mourn and remember the 1989 military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square.
The New School for Democracy, a non-governmental organization that was registered in Hong Kong and later moved its operation to Taiwan in 2020, was among the groups that organized the candlelight vigil. The group’s chairperson, Tseng Chien-yuan (曾建元), says Taiwan has become the most important hub for June 4th commemoration worldwide after the promulgation of the 2019 national security law in Hong Kong.
Tseng says the Taiwanese should consider the June 4th massacre as a Taiwan issue. He says that’s because the regime that cracked down on its own people on June 4th is the same one now threatening Taiwan’s democracy with fighter jets and warships. He adds that Chinese authorities have also destroyed civil society in Hong Kong, demonstrating that the June 4th Massacre is, in fact, still ongoing.
On Sunday, Hong Kong police arrested and detained at least 20 people. At least four have been accused of “sedition”, and at least one accused of obstructing police officers. Among the arrested is Lau Ka-yee (劉家儀), a National Taiwan University student who is originally from Hong Kong. Lau is a representative of “The Tiananmen Mothers,” a group seeking justice and an investigation into the Chinese government's actions during the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and crackdown. Lau was released on bail on Monday morning, after being in police custody for 48 hours.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, a UN department that works to promote and protect human rights under international law, released a short statement on its Twitter account. It urged the Hong Kong authorities to release those detained for exercising their right to freedom of expression and peaceful assembly.