Police warn families of Tiananmen crackdown dead not to visit graves on
37th anniversary
[June 04, 2026]
By KEN MORITSUGU and KANIS LEUNG
BEIJING (AP) — Chinese authorities are snuffing out any remembrance of
the deadly 1989 military crackdown on student-led pro-democracy protests
in Tiananmen Square, which happened 37 years ago Thursday, in a further
tightening of a yearslong campaign to erase what happened from public
memory.
Police told relatives of the victims they would not be allowed to visit
a cemetery in Beijing on the anniversary of the crackdown, a person with
knowledge of the matter said. The person spoke on condition of anonymity
because of fear of retribution.
Relatives of the victims visited the cemetery on the anniversary for
more than 30 years to read memorial statements with police keeping
watch, Amnesty International said. They belong to a group called
Tiananmen Mothers.
Hundreds of people, and possibly thousands, were killed in 1989 as
troops advanced through crowds that were trying to stop the military
from reaching the protesters in Tiananmen Square, a vast plaza in the
center of the Chinese capital. The decision by the Communist Party
leadership to send in the military was a pivotal moment in China's
modern history, determining that the market reform that transformed the
country into the world's second largest economy would not be coupled
with political liberalization.
Rubio says censorship can't erase the past
In Hong Kong, police stepped up security Thursday to prevent any kind of
commemoration at or near a park where a massive candlelight vigil lit up
the night on the anniversary every year until a clampdown following
major anti-government protests in 2019. On Wednesday, they stopped two
performance artists from making symbolic gestures in separate incidents.
One briefly held up a question-mark-shaped balloon outside a department
store.
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who recently accompanied President
Donald Trump on a state visit to Beijing, issued a statement marking the
anniversary. “No amount of censorship can erase the past," it said.
"Those who sacrificed to uphold their unalienable rights of free
expression and peaceful assembly will be vindicated someday.”
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning dismissed the U.S. as a
smear on her nation's political system. “We urge the U.S. side to ...
stop using so-called democracy and human rights as a pretext to
interfere in China’s internal affairs,” she said.
Tiananmen Mothers calls crackdown a crime
Tiananmen Mothers issued an annual appeal for justice ahead of this
year's anniversary. The statement, signed by 107 people, demanded full
disclosure of what happened, compensation for the victims and their
families and the pursuit of legal accountability for those responsible.
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Flags bearing the hammer and sickle symbol are flown in front of
Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, China, Thursday, June 4, 2026. (AP
Photo/Ng Han Guan)
“The sacrifice of our family members is an indelible pain etched in
our hearts. Our tears have run dry, grief is buried deep within,
what remains is eternal remembrance of our family members and hatred
for the crime of massacring the people,” Zhang Xianling, a member of
the group, said in a video message posted on Facebook — which is
blocked in China.
Amnesty said it is deeply troubling that China's suppression of the
commemoration appears to be escalating. “Banning the relatives of
people killed in the Tiananmen crackdown from visiting their loved
ones’ graves is a heartless act by the Chinese authorities," Sarah
Brooks, the organization's deputy director for Asia, said in a
statement.
The Beijing Public Security Bureau did not respond to a faxed
request for comment.
Hong Kong has banned an annual vigil
Authorities in Hong Kong have banned the vigil since 2020, at first
citing the COVID-19 pandemic. Simon Ng, a past participant, walked
around the nearby Causeway Bay shopping district to mark the
anniversary. “There are some things I can neither forget nor let go,
so I have to come and and take a walk,” he said.
Three of the organizers of the vigil have been charged under a 2020
national security law. One pleaded guilty, which may result in a
lesser sentence. The other two have been tried and are awaiting a
verdict.
One of them, lawyer Chow Hang-tung, said in an online post published
last weekend that she would go on a 37-hour hunger strike in prison.
“Behind the glitter of power and dictatorship lies the blood and
broken dreams of ordinary people. For in amnesia lies the demise of
democracy,” she wrote.
Derek Chu, a former district councilor, said on Instagram that he
visited Chow on Thursday and told her he would also stop eating for
37 hours to show his support. He added that a shop he runs is giving
out LED candles that can be used to remember the victims.
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Leung reported from Hong Kong.
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