World commemorates 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre

The tragic events of the Tiananmen Square massacre are being commemorated at vigils around the world today but the bloodshed remains heavily censored in mainland China.

A paramilitary policeman stands guard at Tiananmen square.

The 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre is being commemorated at vigils around the world today as the Australian Government issues a warning about China’s continuing anti-democratic restrictions.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of Chinese protesters were killed in 1989 when the People’s Liberation Army opened fire in the streets of Beijing to end weeks of demonstrations sparked by the death of pro-reform Communist leader Hu Yaobang.

Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne said it was a “tragic loss of life” due to Chinese “military force”.

“Australia remains concerned about continuing constraints on freedom of association, expression and political participation in China,” she said today.

Opposition foreign affairs spokeswoman Penny Wong said: “It was a brutal and tragic event. It will always be remembered.”

The bloodshed remains heavily censored in mainland China but an annual memorial is held on June 4 in Hong Kong, a Chinese special administrative region, with tonight’s expected to be the biggest in years amid growing concern about Beijing’s efforts to curb the city’s independence.

The photo that shocked the world.

It is unknown how many people died in the crackdown

More than 100,000 people are expected to gather for the candlelight vigil.

Organiser Lee Cheuk Yan, from the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, said it was critical to “fight against amnesia” caused by China’s efforts to cover up its history.

Mr Lee - who was arrested in Beijing in the wake of the massacre - said tens of thousands of Hong Kong residents, as well as people from mainland China, were maintaining a “spirit of defiance” to “tell the world what happened 30 years ago”.

Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe issued a rare public defence of the brutal crackdown last weekend, saying it allowed China to enjoy three decades of “stability and development”.

“That incident was a political turbulence and the central government took measures to stop the turbulence, which is a correct policy,” he said in Singapore.

But Mr Lee challenged him to make the same case to the Chinese people, instead of jailing dissidents and censoring the history of Tiananmen.

The Tiananmen Square protests shocked the world.

More than 100,000 people are expected to gather for the candlelight vigil.

“If the Communist Party thinks they are so right in massacring their own people, tell us how many people were killed,” he said.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also urged China to make “a full, public accounting of those killed” in the “heroic protest movement”.

“The events of thirty years ago still stir our conscience, and the conscience of freedom-loving people around the world,” he said today.

“Over the decades that followed, the United States hoped that China’s integration into the international system would lead to a more open, tolerant society. Those hopes have been dashed. China’s one-party state tolerates no dissent and abuses human rights whenever it serves its interests.”

Tonight’s memorial in Hong Kong is also expected to stoke fears about Hong Kong chief executive Carrie Lam’s plans to ram through new laws allowing China to extradite people from the city, which has raised concerns from the Australian Government.

Daniel Andrews in Tiananmen Square in September 2015.

Hong Kong politician Claudia Mo - who covered the 1989 massacre as a journalist - said Beijing had a “political grand plan” to shut down the city.

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“Hong Kong is like a little boat, it’s sinking fast,” she said.

Amid the tension, a key leader of the Tiananmen protests - who remains on China’s most wanted list - was denied entry to Hong Kong after flying in to mark the anniversary.

“Hong Kong only listens to the Chinese Communist Party,” Feng Congde said.

Ms Lam said Hong Kong “upholds and safeguards the rights and freedoms of individuals”.

She told reporters this morning that the Hong Kong government respected the views of people expected to gather at tonight’s “public gathering” to mark the “historic incident”.

But the chief executive dodged a question about whether she agreed with the Chinese Government’s interpretation of the Tiananmen massacre.