The protests in Tiananmen Square that led to the Massacre of Tiananmen Square on July 4, 1989 were protests of students who felt oppressed by the government and their elders, they felt that they had all their decisions made for them and had no control over their lives. At first the protests were relatively under control as the government allowed them to happen believing that it would help relieve tension among the people. But the protests quickly escalated with the arrival of Gorbachev and the camera crews from every major countries. The Chinese government tried to wait until Gorbachev left to crack down on the protesters, but could not stall for time as on July 4, 1989 the Chinese Republic Army was given orders to clear out Tiananmen Square, they soldiers then followed the orders and shot at the public without discrimination, killing thousands. While no official numbers have been released, many people estimate that the total death and injury toll is to be in the thousands. Many injured people were dragged to hospitals on bikes and on bike carts as there were not enough ambulances to carry all the injured along with the fact that most ambulances were blocked by the army. A popular figure and image of the Tiananmen Square massacre was a man known as "The Tank Man" who stood of incoming tanks and didn't allow them to pass, symbolizing the peoples revolt against the government and its control.
Do you think the massacre of Tiananmen Square was justified by the government?
No, I believe it wasn't justified. There was no warning to the public and they seemed to allow the protesting at first. No one knew that the army was coming into Tiananmen square. Yes, their protests negative towards the government, but they did not physically harm the government. They were never told to leave or they would be attacked. It was unjust and unfair of the government.
ReplyDeleteI don't believe the massacre was justified. China didn't tell the people to stop protesting and allowed them to protest for several days without complaint. They should have notified the protestors before bringing their army and shooting people at random. I think the Chinese government wanted to scare its people and show them that their government has complete control. That being said, I don't think their actions had an excuse and should never have happened.
ReplyDeleteThe massacre was wrong. It showed that Deng was losing his grip on the people and that the Military violence was the only was to suppress them. This may have been justified if the protestors were causing harm but they weren't. This is just like the Hungarian revolt where the red army came in and massacred hundreds. Communisms only grasp on the people is military force
ReplyDeleteThe massacre was definitely wrong but wouldn't Mao probably have done something even worse had he still been ruling. If Mao was still ruling when the protest started, an entire generation would have been wiped out. It wouldn't have been a massacre it would have been a full out genocide.
ReplyDeleteI think that overall the massacre was wrong, but I also think I understand why Deng's government would do it. Deng didn't want China to fall apart like Gorbachev's Soviet Union. He could feel the government losing control of the people. Instead of letting his government fall apart, Deng put his foot down to maintain control.
ReplyDeleteTianenmen Square shows the fundamental difference between Deng and Gorbachev. Both brought a lot of non-Communist reforms to their respective country, but while Deng brought capitalism/economic freedom, his reforms didn't include any of the social freedom of Gorbachev's glasnost/perestroika.
If Deng hadn't kept the government very strict, China could have very easily fallen apart- as evidenced by the Soviet Union's collapse. So I think I understand Deng's rationale in Tianenmen Square. Now, there's something to be said about right/wrong if a government needs to shoot a tank at its people in order to maintain control, but that's a different argument.