Sawt Falasteen - Taiwan's Lai, Rubio vow to 'never forget' Tiananmen victims

Chinese troops and tanks forcibly cleared peaceful protesters from Beijing's Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989, after weeks-long demonstrations demanding greater political freedoms.

The exact toll is unknown but hundreds died, with some estimates exceeding 1,000 people.

China's communist rulers have since sought to erase any public mention of the crackdown.

"Authoritarian governments often choose to be silent and forget history; democratic societies choose to preserve the truth and refuse to forget those who have contributed to the ideal of human rights and their dreams," Lai said in a post on Facebook ahead of an annual vigil in Taipei's Liberty Square.

"We remember the sacrifice of our predecessors, and we know the value of freedom, and we cannot ignore the erosion of global democracy and the rule of law by authoritarian expansion."

China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and has threatened to seize the democratic island by force.

In a rare return to human rights rhetoric, Rubio said Tuesday the "world will never forget" what happened on June 4 even as Beijing "actively tries to censor the facts".

"Today we commemorate the bravery of the Chinese people who were killed as they tried to exercise their fundamental freedoms, as well as those who continue to suffer persecution as they seek accountability and justice for the events of June 4, 1989," Rubio said in a statement.

Despite a long Senate career as an outspoken advocate for human rights, Rubio has been more selective as Donald Trump's top diplomat, focusing his rights criticism on US adversaries including China and Cuba.

Rubio's predecessors issued statements each year to mark the anniversary of the bloody crackdown.

But Rubio's statement had subtle differences -- his Democratic predecessor Antony Blinken last year urged China to accept recommendations in a UN-backed rights review and to respect freedoms enshrined in the post-World War II Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

Rubio did not reference the United Nations, a frequent target of criticism by the Trump administration.

- 'Reaffirm our commitment' -

In Hong Kong, a jailed activist began a 36-hour hunger strike on Wednesday, a dogged attempt to individually commemorate the anniversary in a city that once hosted huge public remembrances.

Former lawyer Chow Hang-tung used to help organise an annual vigil that drew tens of thousands to the city's Victoria Park.

Hong Kong had been the only place under Chinese rule where commemoration of the crackdown was tolerated.

Slogans at the candlelight vigil sometimes called for democracy in China and an end to one-party rule.

But after huge and sometimes violent protests roiled the city in 2019, Beijing brought in a wide-ranging national security law that has quashed political dissent.

The public memorial has effectively been banned and Chow imprisoned, facing a potential life sentence on subversion charges.

On Wednesday, AFP journalists saw dozens of police patrolling the district around the park.

Over the last few years, activists have been detained for "offences in connection with seditious intention" around the anniversary.

In a social media post, Chow said her hunger strike would "commemorate this day and reaffirm our commitment".

She called the city's national security officers "real 'criminals'" and urged authorities to apologise to her over her "wrongful" imprisonment.

"History tells us that (the apology) will likely take a very long time –- the Tiananmen Mothers have been waiting for 36 years and still have not received an apology," she said, referring to an activist group made up of families of victims of the crackdown.

A video featuring 87-year-old Zhang Xianling, whose 19-year-old son was killed in 1989, circulated online last week.

China's authorities have never addressed the group's plea for dialogue around the issue -- instead, they have used all means to monitor and wiretap members of the Tiananmen Mothers, Zhang said.

"The lights in Victoria Park may have been blown out by the gales, but the sparks of justice will glow in the hearts of every conscientious person," she added.

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