Until recently, Hong Kong was one of the few Chinese territories which commemorated the June 4 1989 event. Public vigils were held each year. However Beijing has now effectively banned the city’s annual gathering and shut down Hong Kong’s Tiananmen museum.
Police in Hong Kong have closed off large parts of Victoria Park, which in the past was the site of large candlelit vigils marking the anniversary of the massacre. Officials have warned that any unauthorised assembly could see demonstrators facing prison sentences.
These actions have been seen by activists as part of China’s broader agenda to snuff out political dissent in Hong Kong. The United States has called the ban on gatherings “an attempt to suppress the memories of that day”. “To the people of China and to those who continue to stand against injustice and seek freedom, we will not forget June 4,” Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a statement.
The Tiananmen Square protests in Beijing became the focus for national demonstrations calling for greater political freedoms in 1989. Thousands of people, mainly students camped for weeks in the square before the military moved in on 4 June and opened fire.
The Chinese government says 200 civilians and several dozen security personnel died. Other estimates have ranged from hundreds to as many as 10,000.
The figurines created by students at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) are a copy of the “Goddess of Democracy” statue which was pulled down by university officials last December.
The statue had been a fixture on the campus for 11 years, and was modelled after the original democracy symbol paraded by students at Tiananmen Square in 1989 before they were killed by soldiers.
It was removed last year as other universities tore down Tiananmen Square tributes including the “Pillar of Shame” memorial at Hong Kong University.
“This is a kind of a rebellion. The university ‘stole’ the statue from its students so we’ve decided to make our own versions on it and put it back,” one of the protest organisers told Hong Kong Free Press, a local outlet.
Protesters have printed tiny 3D replicas of the statue, and concealed them on campus for other students to find. Attached are notes urging the finder to “bring her home, and do not forget the meaning behind it!”