A Moment In Time

Today marks the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Tiananmen Square was not only an event which reminded Chinese citizens and the world alike that Communism would not be disappearing anytime soon from China, but was also monumental for Australia. Australia's then Prime Minister, Bob Hawke, wept for the slain, and in response granted permanent asylum to the 42,000 Chinese students studying in Australia at the time. This event has changed forever the multicultural landscape of Australia, as these Children of the Revolution made Australia their home.


It is inconceivable to imagine that peaceful pro-democracy movements could culminate in the quelling of dissent in such a violent manner. More inconceivable, is that the event has been downplayed and almost erased from history within China itself, with many of today's uni students in China vague on details of what occurred, or referring to it as an "incident". It's not clear how many were killed, however it is thought those who died were ordinary people on the outskirts of the square who sought to protect the protesting students from the soldiers.


The shot above, 'Tank Man', was one of the most iconic images of the Tiananmen Square massacre (rolls of film were confiscated by Chinese authorities, and Tank Man was smuggled out of the country by an unknown US uni student). No one knows what happened to the man with the shopping bags, who shook his fists at the tanks, before being dragged away by the crowd.

Chinese authorities do not consider an apology is necessary, as according to Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu, "The word 'apologise' you use is inappropriate. Over the past 30 years, China has made great achievements in terms of economic and social development." I wonder if the families and friends of those who lost their life would agree?