How China Rewrote Tiananmen History

Government allows memorials for the first time

(NEWSER) - As part of its campaign to attract Western visitors to the 2008 Beijing Olympics, China allowed Tiananmen Square memorials this year for the first time since the protests of June 4, 1989. The government maintains that the uprising was a counterrevolutionary riot and refuses to release details; a security crackdown in the square normally prevents citizens from commemorating the event. More»

(NEWSER) - An annual vigil marking the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre brought a record 150,000 people to a park in Hong Kong, the only place in China to mark the event, reports the BBC. “It is something to remember not only for our generation but for the next generation as well,” said an attendee. In Beijing, both traffic and foreign reporters were barred from the square. More»

Widener recalls capturing Tank Man image 20 years ago

(NEWSER) - On the 20th anniversary of Tiananmen Square, one image endures: a lone man standing in front of a column of tanks, refusing to let them pass. Jeff Widener, the AP photographer who captured the moment, tells USA Today how he evaded the police and the censors to take the shot and get it out of China. More»

Democracy recedes for today's student generation

(NEWSER) - It's now been 20 years since the Chinese army rolled into Tiananmen Square, killing hundreds of students in the final push to put down a growing democracy movement. Beijing is anxious as the June 4 anniversary of the massacre approaches; Google "Tiananmen" in Beijing and you'll likely find pages blocked. But as the Los Angeles Times reports, apathy among today's youth, more than censorship, has made the events of 1989 recede. More»

Bucktoothed girl not 'flawless' enough for Olympic image

(NEWSER) - Chinese officials are defending Friday’s lip-synched performance of its national anthem, reports the AP. "There were a number of candidates to sing that song and at the end of the day the artistic directors picked the best voice and the best performer," a spokesman said. The actual singer, a 7-year-old with crooked teeth, was replaced at the last minute with a prettier 9-year-old who mouthed the words to a track recorded by the first girl. More»