The Anniversary of Shame - multiple angles and possibilities, then and now

June 4th is the anniversary of the culmination of a protest movement that had been in place since April. Rather bizarrely, it was the death of senior political figure Hu Yaobang which concentrated the minds of many on the nature of the Peoples' Republic of China. 

Deng Xiaoping (left) with Hu Yaobang who had a coincidentally Mao-style haircut.

1989 is also the year in which authoritarianism collapsed in eastern Europe, which can be partially credited to the reforms of Mikhail Gorbachev, whose implied policy of "non-interference" meant that the Soviet army would not be used to suppress the general public or even physically crush them, as had happened in 1968. The politburo of the Communist Party of China had been divided since the PRC had been founded 40 years earlier. Paramount leader Deng Xiaoping was a semi-reformist who had done away with the brutal chaos of the Cultural Revolution. Despite being more open minded than his extreme predecessor Mao Zedong, he could be persuaded by any politburo committee member, even hardliners. 

A leading reformist figure in the PRC had been the then General Secretary of the CPC, Zhao Ziyang. He had even played the key role in the exchange of signed documents in 1984 for the handover of Hong Kong in 1997. This had been negotiated by Deng Xiaoping who had managed to pull off something incredible: getting Margaret Thatcher to compromise.

(from left) Margaret Thatcher, UK foreign secretary Geoffrey Howe, Deng Xiaoping, Zhao Ziyang.

In addition to the "ceremonials", Zhao Ziyang is one of the few political leaders who had the skills and personality to improve the PRC in multiple ways, so that the word "People" in the nation's official title would no longer be cruelly ironic. In fact, he had the potential to dismantle the numerous inefficient and awful flaws that still infected (both then and now) the Chinese state to a greater extent than Deng Xiaoping had been willing to, or even capable of, implementing. 

 

Zhao Ziyang and Mikhail Gorbachev had a shared spirit.

He could have been the equivalent of Gorbachev, and may have had greater success due the fundamentals of the Soviet Union economy being grindingly inefficient and largely unsolvable to the full necessary extent. 

Popular disapproval of the handling of Hu Yaobang's funeral arrangements and prior treatment had led to many protests, most notably in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. It drew global attention to the location which is more or less the effective heart of China.

The "Goddess of Democracy" statue in front of the official painting of PRC founder Mao Zedong on the Forbidden City.

The politburo had an oversupply of hardliners, in particular Premier Li Peng. Many, especially Premier Li were somewhat paranoid and hallucinated wild conspiracy theories such as extreme rightists manipulated by "foreign forces", who couldn't speak for the average citizen. 

The late premier Li Peng, a hardliner who was highly disprovable.

Whereas protesters blocked roads with the aim of continuing their movement, they were probably unaware of the lengths to which the police and then army would go to, when instructed by the government.

The official title "Peoples' Liberation Army" became tragically ironic given the use of AK-47s against unarmed civilians.

While in very loose general terms Deng Xiaoping was unwilling for firm force to be used, he was skirted around by Li Peng who convinced too many politburo members to become nearly as paranoid as he had been. Therefore, Martial Law was announced by Premier Li. 

Foreseeing trouble on the metaphorical horizon, Zhao Ziyang went to the square to appeal to the protesters to back away while subtly warning them of the awful potential to come. Accompanying him was future general secretary (and paramount leader) Hu Jintao. If only Hu had been properly listening with due care and attention, then proper reforms would have been permitted to fulfill their enormous potential of the PRC being more than an economic powerhouse fuelled by extreme nationalism.  

Zhao Ziyang and future CPC general secretary Hu Jintao

The greatest senior politician in PRC history was subsequently stripped of all of his positions and placed under house arrest. As Deng Xiaoping retired from politics in 1992, his successor would have been Zhao Ziyang. The treatment of him and most of the population thereafter has been a long, drawn-out and agonizing opportunity lost. The means with which to dismantle the worst features of Chinese culture which had been aggravated by communism were lost. While there is potential for such means to be revived, the technologically advanced dictatorship and its nation seem to become increasingly domineering on a daily basis. While the PRC is a world player, it also seems to be trying to grow into a quasi-empire.

Contrary to common belief, Tank Man appeared the day after the massacre.

On June 5, the famous "Tank Man" appeared to block a column of tanks withdrawing from Beijing, after the PLA had engaged in what became known as Tiananmen Square Massacre. The PLA having killed hundreds or maybe thousands, the tank driver showed remarkable restraint when faced with a man armed only with shopping bags. Other civilians diffused the tension by firmly ushering him away from the road. 

To this day, his identity remains a mystery. Mystery is a term which equally applies to what could have happened if the CPC politburo had not squandered the opportunity to transform a nation state with enormously positive potential. Instead, the PRC has developed into a grossly flawed nation with the potential to become a global pariah.