Days before the seventeenth anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the Tiananmen Mothers [1] say they still request compensation from the Chinese communist regime for relatives of those killed on June 4, 1989. The spokesperson for the Tiananmen Mothers, Ding Zilin, published the report “Our Faith and Ideas – Commemorating the Seventeenth Anniversary of the June Fourth Movement” through the Human Rights in China (HRIC)organization.
A number of those who were left handicapped after the massacre and 126 relatives of the victims, including Ding Zilin, cosigned the report. In the report, the Tiananmen Mothers cited 186 confirmed deaths and over 70 handicapped victims, but the total number of victims is believed to be much higher.
The report reiterated the Tiananmen Mothers’ desire for the Chinese communist regime to recognize the Tiananmen Massacre and compensate the relatives of victims for their losses. The report repeats the Mothers’ stance first raised two years ago: “To tell the truth, to never forget, to seek justice, and to seek conscience.” The report proposed that basic rights of the victims be resolved first, before using legislative measures, and the court to resolve the issue of the Tiananmen Square massacre—as proposed earlier by the group. The group suggests first removing government personnel who currently monitor relatives of the victims and allowing public mourning for the victims. The Tiananmen Mothers say their two main principles are “not allow blasphemy of those deceased Tiananmen Square Massacre victims and not allow damage to the victims’ honor or dignity” and “not allow the legal process be circumvented through a private or administrative settlement.”
Human Rights in China (HRIC) has called on the international society and people inside China to support the Tiananmen Mothers’ plan. It has also urged the Chinese communist regime to stop violating the human rights of the relatives of Tiananmen Square victims, as well as make public a complete list of victims and the condition of people who are still being detained. HRIC asks the Chinese communist regime to carefully review the Tiananmen Mothers’ request for compensation and a fair criminal investigation.
