April 27th, 1989: The Day the Chinese People Stood up

• Main Author: Jean-Philippe Béja
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: National Sun Yat-sen University 2019-06-01
• Series: Contemporary Chinese Political Economy and Strategic Relations: An International Journal
• Subjects: social movement; democracy; June Fourth; demonstration
• Online Access: http://icaps.nsysu.edu.tw/var/file/131/1131/img/CCPS5(2)-Beja.pdf

On April 26th 1989, the People’s Daily published an editorial branding the Student movement that started in the wake of Hu Yaobang’s death a “turmoil”. Despite the supreme leadership’s qualification, tens of thousands students supported by urban residents took to the street to protest. It was the first time in the history of the People’s Republic that ordinary citizens challenged publicly a decision by the Central committee. On 27th April 1989, the Chinese people stood up: fear had receded, and free expression was taking place. The ensuing events showed that urban residents in the whole of China were willing to express their demands for change in peaceful demonstrations. It symbolizes the emergence of Beijing citizens’ new political maturity. Unhappily, it was crushed during the night of June 3rd to June 4th. However, if the ways to express their demands have changed during the following three decades, some changes induced by the movement have been ingrained in people’s minds. Rights awareness has resisted the government’s innumerable crackdowns.