Dissidents across China have been placed under surveillance or warned to remain silent ahead of the 36th anniversary of the CCP’s Tiananmen Square Massacre.
As the 36th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre approaches, the authorities of communist China are once again clamping down on dissent.
In the massacre, which occurred on June 4, 1989, Chinese troops violently suppressed a student-led pro-democracy movement, resulting in thousands of deaths and injuries. Today, authorities remain deeply sensitive to any public remembrance of the tragedy.
Mr. Wang, a Beijing resident and close friend of a prominent dissident, told The Epoch Times that key individuals in the capital are already under close watch by state security police.
According to Wang, whose full name is not disclosed due to fear of retaliationon, on May 30, senior journalist and dissident Gao Yu was taken away on so-called “travel” by state security.
Several others, including lawyers Mo Shaoping, a prominent human rights attorney known for defending dissidents and advocating for legal reforms, Pu Zhiqiang, a well-known civil rights lawyer recognized for his work on free speech and representing activists in sensitive cases, and writer Lao Gui, an outspoken commentator and essayist noted for his critical writings on Chinese politics and society, have been placed under house arrest, according to Wang.
“These restrictions are expected to remain in effect until after June 4,” Wang said.
‘Travel’ for Dissenting Voices
The term “forced travel,” as described by Chinese dissidents, refers to a common tactic used by authorities during politically sensitive periods such as the annual Two Sessions or the Tiananmen Square Massacre anniversary. Under the pretense of tourism, police remove activists from their homes to isolate them and prevent contact with the media or participation in memorial activities.
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Wang noted that, possibly due to budget constraints, not all dissidents have been relocated this time. Many are instead monitored by local police or security guards. He named another individual currently confined to his home: prominent democracy activist Hu Jia.
An outspoken critic of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), Hu is internationally recognized for his advocacy of democracy, environmental protection, and HIV/AIDS awareness. In 2008, he was awarded the European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought.
European Parliament President Hans-Gert Pottering gives a speech beside Hu Jia’s empty chair during the Sakharov prize-giving ceremony at the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Dec. 17, 2008. Dominique Faget/AFP via Getty Images
“For these individuals, even a trip to the supermarket requires a police escort. Officers follow them everywhere. It’s been decades since June 4, 1989, yet the authorities still relentlessly target dissenting voices,” Wang said.
Wang added that the repeated detentions are taking a toll on the health of older dissidents.
“Gao Yu is elderly and in poor health. Being subjected to this over and over is a form of torment,” he said.
Gao, 81, is the former deputy editor of Economics Weekly and is renowned for her outspoken reporting on political and economic issues. She has been imprisoned multiple times for her work, most notably in a high-profile 2015 case when she was sentenced to seven years for allegedly leaking a CCP document to foreign media.
Veteran Chinese journalist and dissident Gao Yu poses for a photo at her home in Beijing on March 31, 2016. She was recently forced to leave Beijing ahead of a major foreign policy forum taking place in the capital. Greg Baker/AFP/Getty Images
Her courage and commitment to press freedom have earned her widespread international recognition.
In southwestern China’s Guizhou Province, a Christian identified as Mr. Huang, who declined to give his full name out of fear of retribution, told The Epoch Times that several members of the Guizhou Human Rights Seminar group have been placed under house arrest, with police officers stationed at the doors of at least four members. Authorities have also visited homes to issue direct warnings against speaking with foreign media, he said.
“The state is so financially strained, yet it still spares no expense—using taxpayers’ money—to suppress dissent,” he said.
Hu Gang, a friend of Guizhou-based dissident Ji Feng, told The Epoch Times on May 30 that Ji—currently in Yanjiao, a town on the Beijing–Hebei border—had received a call from Guizhou state security instructing him to prepare for “travel,” though the destination remained unknown.
This meant police would take him away, keep his whereabouts undisclosed, and closely monitor him in the days that followed.
Ji was a student leader at Guizhou University during the 1989 pro-democracy protests and has remained an outspoken critic of the CCP ever since.
In Hefei, eastern China’s Anhui Province, local rights advocate Mr. Zhang, who also declined to give his full name for safety reasons, told The Epoch Times that former prosecutor Shen Liangqing, who participated in the 1989 protests and has been imprisoned multiple times, was recently warned by police not to speak to foreign journalists.
“They told him to ‘watch his words’ and ‘stay low-profile,’” Zhang said.
Online Censorship
Online censorship has also intensified. Netizens report that accounts have been suspended for sharing commemorative images, such as those featuring lit candles as a symbol of mourning for the June 4, 1989, victims. This signals a zero-tolerance policy toward any reference to the Tiananmen Square Massacre.
Political analyst Sun Li, based in Beijing, said the Tiananmen Square Massacre remains a deep wound in China’s modern political history.
The Tiananmen Square Massacre was the CCP’s response to a student-led peaceful protest, known as the 1989 pro-democracy movement, against corruption. The protest lasted nearly two months in Beijing and other cities in China.
On the night of June 3 and into the early hours of June 4, 1989, Chinese troops in Beijing opened fire on unarmed students and civilians. While the Chinese regime has never released an official death toll, declassified U.S. documents in 2014 estimated that around 10,454 people were killed and around 40,000 injured.
Shen Yue contributed to this report.
