On Tiananmen crackdown anniversary, US senator’s call for military force against Floyd protesters stirs fury

Senator Tom Cotton accused of hypocrisy for supporting Hong Kong protesters then seeking ‘overwhelming show of force’ at home

Journalists among critics of New York Times for giving editorial space to call for military presence

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US Senator Tom Cotton’s opinion piece in The New York Times has raised questions about its content, the newspaper’s decision to run it and the timing, which coincides with the anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown. Photo: SCMP

Published: 7:01pm, 4 Jun 2020Updated: 12:03am, 5 Jun 2020

American lawmaker Tom Cotton has called for the deployment of military forces to quell unrest across the United States in an opinion piece published in Asia on June 4, the anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown in 1989, when at least hundreds of protesters were killed by troops in Beijing.

The Arkansas senator wrote in The New York Times that the looting and disorder – which started after the murder of African American man George Floyd in the presence of police officers – needed to be subdued by troops.

A US senator has called for military force to stop the George Floyd protests. Photo: AFP

“One thing above all else will restore order to our streets: an overwhelming show of force to disperse, detain and ultimately deter lawbreakers,” he wrote.

In Minnesota, prosecutors have charged police officer Derek Chauvin, 44, with second-degree murder over Floyd’s death. Chauvin’s three colleagues at the scene of Floyd’s May 25 arrest – Tou Thao, 34, J. Alexander Kueng, 26, and Thomas Lane, 37 – were charged with aiding and abetting second-degree murder.

Riot police officers walk through tear gas during a protest outside the 5th Police Precinct in Minneapolis, the United States, on May 30. Photo: Xinhua

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