China has accused the United States of distorting facts and smearing its political system.
This accusation followed remarks by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who stated that censorship could not ‘erase’ the memory of the Tiananmen crackdown in Beijing in 1989.
It is important to remember that on June 4 of that year, the Chinese government deployed troops and tanks to suppress protests advocating for political reform in and around Tiananmen Square in Beijing.
Reports indicate that the exact death toll from this incident remains uncertain, and discussions regarding the events are censored within mainland China.
During a news conference on Wednesday, Rubio asserted that “no amount of censorship can erase the past.”
He added, “Those who sacrificed to uphold their unalienable rights of free expression and peaceful assembly will be vindicated someday.”
In response, China’s foreign ministry expressed its strong opposition to Rubio’s statements on Thursday.
Mao Ning, a spokeswoman for the ministry, stated during a regular news briefing, “The Chinese government has long since reached a clear conclusion regarding the political turmoil that occurred in the late 1980s.”
She continued, “The erroneous remarks made by the US side distort historical facts, tarnish China’s political system and development path, and interfere in China’s internal affairs.”
This year, reports have emerged that authorities prevented the families of those who perished in 1989 from visiting their graves at Wan’an Cemetery in Beijing, with Amnesty International labeling this action as “a heartless act.”
In recent years, Beijing has also taken steps to eliminate all public commemorations in Hong Kong, where an annual candlelight vigil had been observed for decades prior to the enactment of a national security law in 2020.
