Taipei, May 20 (CNA) Several human rights groups will hold an event in Taipei on June 4 to remember a violent crackdown by Chinese authorities on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing almost 34 years ago, they announced Saturday.
The event will commemorate Chinese pro-democracy protesters who were injured or killed during the Chinese military's violent crackdown at Tiananmen Square from the early hours of June 3, 1989 to the morning of June 4, New School for Democracy (NSD) Chairman Tseng Chien-yuan (曾建元) said at a press conference in Taipei.
Organized by the NSD, the Judicial Reform Foundation, and the Covenants Watch, the event is also intended to demonstrate the "resolve" of the people of Taiwan to safeguard democracy and freedom, he said.
Tseng argued that remembering the victims of the Tiananmen Square massacre was not simply a matter of Chinese internal affairs, but "a responsibility" of Taiwanese society as a democracy.
Hong Kong used to hold the largest vigil on the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, but that vigil has been greatly hampered in recent years following the imposition of the National Security Law and Beijing's increasing grip on the city's autonomy.
In Taiwan, the commemoration of the anniversary has sometimes been overshadowed by other events, such as the anti-government protests in Hong Kong in 2019, the 2020 presidential election in Taiwan, and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
At the press conference, Tseng did not seem concerned that the 2024 presidential election would take center stage at this year's remembrance.
The presidential race will not just be "a simple election" but "a fight between democracy and autocracy," Tseng said, echoing recent remarks by Vice President Lai Ching-te (賴清德), who has been selected as the ruling Democratic Progressive Party's presidential candidate.
Tseng expressed hope that all the candidates seeking the country's top job next year will take part in the commemorative event or express their position on the massacre publicly.
Apart from the commemorations, which will begin at 2 p.m. at the Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall, the NSD on Saturday also kicked off an exhibition titled "Bravery, Defend Democracy!" at the landmark that will run through June 13.
