Shenzhen University bans students from 'black shirt' campaign on June 4 eve
University on edge, forbidding students from wearing Tiananmen 'mourning clothes' ahead of June 4 anniversary
As Hong Kong prepares to commemorate the Tiananmen Square crackdown, authorities in neighbouring Guangdong province are beginning to get shifty about domestic dissenters.
“The international reactionary organisation has recently launched a 'mourning clothes' movement. The university must carry out stability maintenance work especially well, unconditionally obeying school plans," the CDT quoted the memo as saying.
"There must be no reactionary speech, [online] forum discussions or demonstrations.”
The note said the school would clamp down on any sign of protest on and off campus, including in departments, dormitories and cafeterias.
Guangdong is seen by many as relatively freer than the rest of the mainland, because of its more liberal media, proximity to Hong Kong and history of being one of the country’s first special economic zones spearheaded by Deng Xiaoping.
Last year, the June 4 candlelight vigil at Hong Kong's Victoria Park saw its highest turnout ever. Organisers, who placed the headcount at 180,000, are expecting a record turnout at this year's event.