HONG KONG (AP) — Every year, Hong Kong residents gather in droves for the annual vigil to commemorate the Tiananmen democracy protests. More than marking the brutal crackdown in Beijing 24 years ago, the event here increasingly symbolizes disaffection with rule by China.
Tens of thousands of people gathered Tuesday evening at a large park in the former British colony. They turned the park into a sea of flickering light as they held candles aloft to remember those killed when their protests in central Beijing were crushed by the Chinese military on June 4, 1989. Commemorations of the crackdown are suppressed everywhere else in China.
The vigil was cut short by a brief but heavy tropical downpour that sent some scurrying for the exits. But many remained, huddling with their candles under umbrellas. Organizers estimated a crowd of 150,000 while police put the number at 54,000, local media reported.
"We need to let everyone know" about what happened, said Alex Lai, a 26-year-old accountant who has been attending the vigil for 10 years. "Because if you don't hold this event then the memory will quickly be forgotten."
Organizers and crowd members called for Beijing to reverse its verdict on the protests, which Communist Party leaders have condemned as a counterrevolutionary riot.
In Beijing, there was no sign of large-scale protest, but some people answered a call by activists to wear black to work in remembrance. As in previous years, many pro-democracy activists themselves were not allowed to leave their homes to mark the anniversary. On the country's lively social media, searches for words including "commemorate" and "6_4" were banned, and the candle emoticon was removed.
