Oxford Amnesty International group organised a march and silent vigil last Thursday to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.
Members marched through the town centre to the Martyr’s Memorial, where they held a minute’s silence, before taking photos. They had two large, bright yellow banners, one stating “Human Rights for China”, and the other “Remember Tiananmen”. Both signs were translated into Chinese, the second translating as “Remember Six-four”, which is how it is referred to in Chinese.
Tim Brook from the Chinese Department in Oxford University made a small speech before the march, in which he spoke about being in China in the spring of 1989 and the unrest which he felt at the time. He stressed that the Tiananmen suppression by the People’s Liberation Army should not be forgotten. He emphasised the injustice surrounding the event and praised Amnesty International for its continued efforts to seek justice for the Chinese people.
Rebecca Darts, who helped to organise the event and who served as president of the Oxford Amnesty International group for the last two terms, described it as a “great success.” She said she was pleased that a huge range of people had attended, including students, members of the public and other local Amnesty groups.
She said it was “essential” for the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre not to go unnoticed and that the event was organised “to show solidarity with the victims and the Tiananmen mothers, and to call for accountability.” She explained how Amnesty is campaigning for an independent and public inquiry into the Tiananmen suppression as a first step towards justice for the victims, and she encouraged students to sign the petition. She went on to stress that the number of innocent civilians killed is still unknown, and an unknown number of protesters still remain in prison.
She acknowledged that only 25 to 30 people participated in the march, around half the number of people that turned up to a similar event held last year. She commented that as it was Trinity term students were likely to be busy with exams, but added that she found it “sad that more students didn’t take to the streets as those students in China did 20 years ago.”
Amensty organises letter-writing lunches every Thursday of term between 2 to 3pm in the Vaults and Garden’s cafe, with lunch for just £1.
