A tale of two squares: Hongkongers join Taiwanese at memorial linking democracy movements past and present

Taiwan News
Date: 2020/06/05
By: Micah McCartney, Chris Chang , Taiwan News, Staff Writer

TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — As thousands in Hong Kong turned out to commemorate the anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre in defiance of a city-wide ban on such gatherings, their countrymen in Taipei joined Taiwanese to remember the pro-democracy activists who lost their lives in Bejing 31 years ago.

Several hundred gathered at Liberty Square west of National Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall. The vigil began with a moment of silence at 8 p.m., followed by speakers and the lighting of candles (and smartphones) to mark the atrocity.

In contrast to last year's 30th-anniversary memorial, which was several times larger and saw the participation of NGOs and government officials, including then-Vice President Chen Chien-jen (陳建仁), this year's was relatively low-key. Rousing, lengthy speeches were replaced with singing, slogans, and acoustic music.

Event organizer Edith Chung (鍾慧沁) said this was by design: "I do not belong to any organization; I just want everyone to come individually." Chung, a Hong Kong native who owns a restaurant in Tainan, also spoke at the 2019 memorial but told Taiwan News that there had been "too much talking."    [FULL  STORY]