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MAC urges China to
face Tiananmen
INDIFFERENCE: DPP Chairman Su Tseng-chang said
Taiwanese should not only seek economic exchanges with China, but should pay
attention to its lack of freedoms
By Chen Hui-ping and Loa Iok-sin / Staff reporters
The Mainland Affairs Council yesterday called on China to reform its political
system with resolve, wisdom and compassion, as well as to face historical facts
concerning the Tiananmen Square Massacre and reflect on their significance for
the development of democracy and human rights in China.
The council made the remarks in a statement marking the 23rd anniversary of
Beijing¡¦s crackdown on unarmed protesters in Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989.
Citing the ¡§Taiwan experience,¡¨ the council said it was because of Taiwan¡¦s
acceptance of the 228 Massacre and the White Terror era that the power of
reconciliation spurred the nation to progress and develop.
The council said China¡¦s rapid development has been the source of many economic
and social clashes, adding that China should seriously consider using democratic
and peaceful means to resolve these issues, as well as pursuing social equality
and human rights.
Re-evaluation of the Tiananmen event would be a critical index to measure
China¡¦s will to launch political reforms, it said.
Beijing still considers the Tiananmen incident a ¡§counter-revolutionary
rebellion¡¨ and has refused to acknowledge any wrongdoing or consider
compensation for those killed.
¡§We hope Mainland China would respond to calls to protect human rights and
establish a true civic society,¡¨ the council said, adding that such a move would
be beneficial to cross-strait interactions.
To commemorate the 23rd anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, a group of
students from National Taiwan University, National Chengchih University,
National Cheng Kung University and National Tsing Hua University were to hold a
commemoration ceremony tonight at Liberty Square in Taipei.
Wang Dan (¤ý¤¦), an exiled leader of the Tiananmen protests who is currently
visiting the US, will deliver a recorded statement at the event, while another
former student leader at Tiananmen, Wuer Kaixi, will give a speech in person.
Meanwhile, Democratic Progressive Party Chairman Su Tseng-chang (Ĭs©÷) yesterday
warned Taiwanese against indifference toward the Tiananman massacre.
Taiwanese indifference toward the event is of great concern, Su wrote on his
Facebook page, in particular because undemocratic regimes still resort to
similar means against their own people, like what is happening in Syria.
Because Taiwan and China are engaging in closer exchanges, Su said, Taiwan
should care about more than just economic exchanges and pay closer attention to
the development of freedom, democracy and human rights in China.
Separately yesterday, the Taiwan Friends of Tibet (TFOT) condemned the Chinese
government¡¦s large-scale arrests of Tibetans in Tibet on the eve of the
Tiananmen anniversary and asked President Ma Ying-jeou (°¨^¤E) to express concern
over human rights issues in cross-strait talks ¡X including one scheduled for
later this month.
¡§Since March last year, as many as 38 people ¡X monks and civilians alike ¡X have
expressed their strongest protest against China¡¦s repression of religion and
human rights in the form of self-immolation,¡¨ the TFOT said in a statement. ¡§For
the first time, two young Tibetans set themselves on fire in front of the
Jokhang Monastery in the Tibetan capital of Lhasa, under tight surveillance of
military and police forces, and the incident was followed by yet another
self-immolation of a woman in Ngaba Prefecture in Sichuan Province.¡¨
On the eve of the Tiananmen anniversary, ¡§as many as 600 Tibetans in Lhasa have
been arrested, which is the largest-scale arrest made in the city since the
Cultural Revolution,¡¨ the statement said, urging the Chinese government to
withdraw troops from Tibet, stop illegal arrests, torture and religious
persecution.
Additional reporting by Chris Wang and AFP
Translation by Jake Chung, staff writer
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