Tiananmen Square Anniversary Reminds Us of Freedom Lost

June 4 is the 37th anniversary of Beijing’s brutal suppression of demonstrations in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square. Naturally, there is no mention of the massacre in the People’s Republic of China. Indeed, the Chinese Communist Party routinely tightens security in the capital on the massacre’s anniversary to prevent any embarrassing protests.

The crackdown was national and brutal. According to Amnesty International: “Immediately after the military crackdown, the Chinese authorities began to hunt down those involved in the demonstrations. Thousands of people were detained, tortured, imprisoned, or executed after unfair trials charged with ‘counter-revolutionary’ crimes.” Millions of Chinese, anyone suspected of having liberal sensibilities, were purged from the CCP. The desire for liberty remained widespread but had to be disguised.

Of course, the terrible death toll, likely in the thousands, was actually modest for the PRC. The only good news of Tiananmen was that the new China is more repressive than murderous, as during the 27 years when Mao Zedong effectively ruled the country. His madcap tenure, highlighted by consolidation of power, revenge against opponents, various ideological campaigns (Anti-Rightist Movement, Anti-Deviation Right Struggle, and others), agricultural collectivization and backyard industrialization (Great Leap Forward), and combination political purge/​personal revenge/​civil war (Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution), cost tens of millions of lives, a staggering toll making him the most prolific mass murderer in history.

Unfortunately, Mao’s image and influence continue to beset China. Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party and president of the Chinese government, fears instability of the sort so characteristic of Maoism. However, in other ways, he is a devoted Maoist, having steadily reinforced the role of the CCP and his control over it. In almost every way, China has become less free since he took control in 2012. Political controls are much tighter today than in the years after Mao’s death.

There is no easy strategy for outsiders, including Uncle Sam, to force Beijing to treat its people with dignity and respect their liberties. Repression is essential to the CCP’s control. Few authoritarian governments have voluntarily dismantled themselves. The Eastern European states generally went peacefully, but only because they were unable to hang onto control. Even Mikhail Gorbachev, Ronald Reagan’s essential partner in ending the Cold War, hoped to reform, not end, communism.

Moreover, Washington has a plethora of contentious issues with the PRC. Controversies include trade and investment, technology and supply, maritime and allied security, international pressure and domestic meddling, and more. How to balance such competing concerns and manage contradictions among them remains contentious. President Donald Trump emphasizes economic and commercial concerns.

Although there is no easy response to Chinese repression, Americans should support the liberty and dignity of the Chinese people when confronting that country. Human rights are more than a political issue for America. It is vital for 1.4 billion Chinese, especially average folks who simply want a better life for themselves and their families and friends.

This reality was dramatically highlighted when 68-year-old Dong Guangping recently escaped the PRC to South Korea, making the 30-hour trip on an inflatable boat. Reported the New York Times, he “was found in an 11-foot-long, light gray rubber boat attached to a 9.9‑horsepower motor.” It was his fourth attempt to escape frequent detention and what otherwise amounted to an open-air prison for a quarter century. Detailed the Times:

Currently held by South Korea, he hopes to join his family in Canada, which, a decade ago, offered him asylum. Although his story is dramatic, he is not the first Chinese dissident to flee by sea. Three years ago, Kwon Pyong escaped the PRC by jet ski. Although barely half Dong’s age, he also suffered greatly for refusing to kowtow to the latest Red Emperor ensconced in Beijing. Reported the Times, after his escape, “Mr. Kwon, 36 and an ethnic Korean, had mocked China’s powerful leader and criticized how the ruling Communist Party was persecuting hundreds of pro-democracy activists at home and abroad. In response, he said, he faced an exit ban and years of detention, prison and surveillance.” (Such attempts at liberation are not as rare as one might imagine. Russian freedom-seekers have similarly sought freedom, seeking to reach America via water.)

Americans are suffering through contentious political times at home. We should never forget the liberties that we enjoy, which are routinely denied to so many people in so many other lands, such as China. Dong Guangping understands the value of freedom. So does Kyong Pyong. We should remember them and their oppressed countrymen as another anniversary of Tiananmen Square approaches.