Exclusive: Tiananmen Mothers Threatened by the Chinese Authorities, Still Hold Memorial Ceremony
Each year, members of the “Tiananmen Mothers” group gather in Wan’an Cemetery in Beijing to hold a memorial ceremony for their loved ones, victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Massacre, who are buried there. Zhang Xianling, mother of victim Wang Nan, condemned the actions of the government and demanded that they take accountability for the victims of the June Fourth massacre. “We ask the government to engage in equal dialogue with us,” and “publish the list of the victims.”
This year, the group faced greater restrictions imposed on them by the authorities, who continue to harass and intimidate the victims’ families. As victim Duan Changlong’s older sister, Duan Changqi, explained in a video below, this year she and her family were directly threatened by the police. The police made three demands: 1) The number of people attending the memorial must be limited, and Duan Changqi’s aunt and uncle, who attend the memorial each year and take pictures and videos, were not allowed to attend; 2) No one was allowed to bring photo or video cameras; 3) Duan Changqi was explicitly forbidden from sharing any information or photos with the media. Duan was told that if she broke any of these rules, she and her family would bear the consequences. To comply with these demands, the attendees only took photos and videos with their phones, as a group of police stood in the background, watching.
Another attendee, You Weijie, was taken away by the police and held until 10pm following the memorial. Her WeChat group chats and “Moments” page were suspended until October 27, and her private chats were blocked until noon on June 6. However, You handled the situation with grace. She said: “I told the police who were in charge of me that I think the public security system should not be a scapegoat for the tragedy of June Fourth. June Fourth is not only a permanent pain in the hearts of our victims' families, but also a permanent pain in the hearts of the people of the country. All of our efforts are to communicate with the government. A government which can resolve the June 4th tragedy, will win the hearts of the people. Now, they still use intimidation to make the victims' families feel more pain. This is a very inhumane path. I hope the government can recognize this fact.”
Despite the pressure from the authorities, a small group still gathered in Beijing as planned to commemorate their loved ones who were tragically murdered on June 4, 1989.
You Weijie read the group’s memorial speech:
Today, as in previous years, we are at the Wan'an Cemetery in front of Yuan Li's grave to pay tribute to our relatives who died in the June 4th Tiananmen Massacre in 1989. They are:
Yang Minghu, male, 42 years old, Legal Department of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Nanchizi, East Chang'an Street, shot in the abdomen;
Yang Yansheng, male, 30 years old, Editorial Office of China Sports Daily, Zhengyi Road, shot in the abdomen while rescuing the wounded;
Hao Zhijing, male, 30 years old, Assistant Researcher of Institute of Science and Technology Policy and Management, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Muxidi, shot in the left chest and died;
Yuan Li, male, 29 years old, Engineer of Beijing Institute of Automation of Mechanical Industry, Ministry of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering, Muxidi, shot through the pharynx and neck to the sacrum and coccyx and died;
Wang Weiping, female, 25 years old, Beijing Medical University fresh graduate, Muxidi, shot in the neck while rescuing the wounded and died;
Duan Changlong, male, 24 years old, Tsinghua University new graduate, National Culture Palace, shot in the left chest and died;
Guo Chunmin, male, 23 years old, Teacher of Beijing Liuyi Middle School, Muxidi, shot in the left kidney and died;
Wang Nan, male, 19 years old, a sophomore student at Beijing Yuetan Middle School, south entrance of South Chang'an Street, shot in the head and killed.
They were a group of passionate young people who cared about the country, the nation and the society, and should have been a vital force for building the nation. But 36 years ago today, under the orders of the government, they were killed by evil bullets, leaving deep and unhealable wounds in the hearts of their families and relatives.
That year, the country had just embarked on a new path to opening up to the outside world. The people were full of hope that they could live normal lives from then on, and that the society would gradually become fair and just. Yet under the system of material scarcity and dual-track prices, some people used their power to create economic benefits for themselves, which was the beginning of “official speculation,” and corruption grew. This caused dissatisfaction among the masses and public resentment. A group of patriotic students and people who cared about the fate of the country stood up and marched in a peaceful and rational way to demonstrate, demanding that the government fight corruption, fight “official speculation,” and establish a sound democratic legal system. The government at that time not only did not accept the legitimate demands of the people, but also mobilized the army equipped with machine guns, armored vehicles, and real guns and live ammunition to bloodily suppress the unarmed, peacefully protesting students and people, causing at least thousands of casualties. When the voices against corruption and “official speculation” were killed, corruption continued growing everywhere like a cancer, and it still has not been curbed even today. As a result, the economic fruits earned by the people with their blood and sweat fell into the pockets of tigers and flies! This is the evil result of repression!
We will never forget the tragedy of the June Fourth massacre, and we will never forget the pain of losing our loved ones. Of the relatives of the eight victims who are buried in Wan'an Cemetery, another father (Wang Weiping's father) left us forever in the past year, which makes us very sad. But we will never give up. We will do our best to seek justice for our relatives, because we believe that the truth will surely defeat lies!
May the souls of the loved ones rest in peace!
Signed:
Wan'an Cemetery June Fourth victims’ relatives:
Zhu Zhidi (Hao Zhijing's mother)
Zhang Xianling (Wang Nan's mother)
Huang Xuefen (Guo Chunmin's mother)
You Weijie (Yang Minghu's widow)
Huang Jinping (Yang Yansheng's widow)
Yuan Ren (Yuan Li's sister)
Hao Jian (Hao Zhijing's cousin)
Duan Changqi (Duan Changlong's sister)
Wan'an Cemetery June Fourth victims’ relatives who have passed away:
Li Xuewen (Yuan Li's mother)
Yuan Kezhi (Yuan Li's father)
Hao Yichuan (Hao Zhijing's father)
Duan Hongbing (Duan Changlong's father)
Wang Fandi (Wang Nan's father)
Zhu Yuxian (Wang Weiping's mother)
Zhou Shuzhuang (Duan Changlong's mother)
Wang Deyi (Wang Weiping's father)
June 4, 2025
Then, the group held a minute of silence to honor the victims of the massacre.
Each approaching the grave in turn, the members of the group in attendance spoke to those who have passed and poured a small cup of wine to honor the deceased. For those victims’ family members who could not attend in person, the members spoke on their behalf and shared their wishes for their loved ones.
The family members left flowers on the graves of their loved ones.
Do a reaction video of Tiananmen Square activists watching Star Wars Andor series if you want more attention on the issue. Right now Americans and Canadians only know June 4 as Star Wars Acolyte day