Remembering Tiananmen Square Massacre: Is it even-handed to crush a peaceful

protest, which is the need of the hour?

Introduction

On 15 tJune, 2020h of June 2020 the world observedwe witnessed the thirty-first 31st
anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. This event left the whole world
morose upon recalling the memory of students who protested for democracy, free
speech and free press, and were brutally plowed into the ground for standing up to the
government. A description of the political background of China from when this event
took place provides better insights as to what was fundamentally wrong with it. After
the death of Mao Zhedong, the students protested against the peremptory government
of China. They wanted to end the dictatorial one-party rule and bring democracy into
the picture. This protest became considerable after numerous people joined it. A visit
by Prime Minister of Soviet Union, Mikhail Gorbachev to Tiananmen Square was
shifted to the airport because of the throng of protestants mustered at Tiananmen
Square. The Chinese Government, in response to this revolution, imposed martial law.
Troops opened fire on protesters, who later responded with heavy stone-pelting. On
June 4, 1989 tanks came onto the scene and the protesters along with the protest were
crushed to the ground. The US department of state showed its solidarity with the
protesters on the 31st anniversary of Tiananmen Square. The people of Hong Kong
decided to defy the police ban in the reminiscence of this massacre on its 31 stt
Anniversary.  

Background: What caused the Tiananmen Massacre? 

Some primary causes that lead to Tiananmen square protest were:-

 Deng Xiao Ping, as per his “to get rich is glorious” philosophy, made some major
economic reforms in China. These reforms resulted in the growth of economic
 prosperity and commercialization and created a huge wealth gap between the rich
and the poor. 

 CCP was a very corrupt political party and they contributed a lot to the promotion
of nepotism or favoritism in politics and government.  

 The escalating unrest was further escalated due to high levels of inflation and
surge of inflation levels created various problems in the agriculture sector of
China. 

 Death of Hu Yaobang played a major role in stoking up unrest. Hu was

considered as an incorruptible and virtuous leader. His death was the last straw
that galvanized the Tiananmen Square protest. 

Mass violations of Human Rights in Tiananmen Square Massacre:

The Tiananmen Square Massacre is one of the most hideous events in the history of
China. The protestants wanted to air their disapproval of the Chinese government in a
peaceful and non-violent manner, but the hegemonic government responded in a
ferocious way, which took away the lives of hundreds of innocent students who
wanted nothing but to liberate their nation from autocracy. 

This move of the Chinese government attracted criticism from all over the world.
USSR President Gorbachev castigated this step of Chinese government. The US
Congress also voted to put economic sanctions on China. This step taken by the
Chinese government created a sense of fear and trepidation amongst the citizens of
China. 

This resolve of the Chinese government violated the right of individuals to express
themselves freely, gather and associate with the aim of protesting peacefully, which is
guaranteed under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR). 
Some of the human rights provided in UDHR which were violated by the Chinese
Government in this case. Though UDHR is not a binding treaty but if it is adhered, a
balanced social order can be established in the world and that was the prime objective
of United Nations when it was formed i.e. to maintain peace and social order and each
member country of UN including China should follow UDHR to maintain stability in
human rights of their citizens, Some basic human rights guaranteed under UDHR
violated by Chinese government during tiananmen square protest are as follows:- 

 Everyone has the right to live with the feeling of freedom and security, as per
article 1, which was desecrated by Chinese government. 

 Persecution of hundreds of students just for being skeptical that they are involved
in the protest is inhumane and degrading in nature and this is prohibited under
article 5. 

 Article 9 was also violated, which forbids the arbitrary and subjective hostile
treatment of individuals. 

 The rights guaranteed under article 18 and 19 were also contravened which
provide freedom to stand for one’s personal thoughts or opinions and freedom of
expressing and airing them.  

A legally binding treaty called the International Covenant of Civil and Political Rights
(ICCPR), which was signed by every permanent member of the UN including China
provides basic human rights. China signed this covenant on 5 March 1998, but unlike
other permanent members of the UN, China has not yet ratified this convention.
Therefore, just like the non-binding UDHR, even a binding treaty such as the ICCPR
has no influence on Chinese government. 
The reason why China is not ratifying the treaty is clear - it doesn’t wants its data and
information to be accessible outside its borders. For this reason, they have their own
versions of Google, Whatsapp, Facebook, etc. If the ICCPR is ratified then it will be
difficult for China to stop the information from getting leaked outside the country
because this covenant guarantees freedom of speech and expression. Human rights
abuse is not new for China, as the state does not carries a stellar past record. 

“China wants to join the UN’s top human rights body, but it won’t submit itself to the
standards that body is sworn to apply,” this is the statement of Chinese Director
Sophie Richardson. This statement is evidence of how stern the Chinese government
is, in regard to its information, data and power.  

China should ratify ICCPR in order to repair its damaged human rights record and
regain international respect and accountability. 

An Analysis of Right To Protest:

Right to protest is a basic human right which is not only guaranteed by international
conventions like UDHR and ICCPR but different countries also have different rules
regarding the right to protest. If we take the example of two countries like India and
the UK, Indian Constitution provides freedom of speech and expression under article
19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b). In the Ramlila Maidan Incident v. Home Secretary, Union Of
India & Ors. case (2012), the Supreme Court of India had stated, “Citizens have a
fundamental right to assembly and protest peacefully, which cannot be taken away by
an arbitrary executive or legistive action.  

The United Kingdom has its own set of rules and regulations regarding the right to
protest. The UK follows the European Convention of Human Rights (ECHR). Article
11 of this Convention is closely linked to protests, marches, demonstrations, etc. This
article averts any public authority to violate or infringe the rights conferred upon the
citizens, i.e. freedom of assembly and freedom of association, as per this
convention10. 
These rights are not absolute and certain restrictions can be imposed on them. These
restrictions can be imposed on the grounds of national security, disorder or crime,
health or morals and protection of others’ right and freedom. These restrictions can be
imposed by the police and armed forces, but they must be supported with  compelling
justifications. These restrictions are imposed to make sure that a protest doesn’t turn
aggressive and violent because once a protest becomes violent, its very purpose is
defeated. While enjoying the rights, one must adhere to one’s duties and
responsibilities

Right to protest is a very crucial weapon used by the citizens to express their views
and thoughts. This should not be distorted as it can appraise a government about the
genuine flaws in their policy. 

Conclusion :

At last, the author wants to conclude that curbing the freedom provided under right to
protest can prove to be a very detrimental move on the part of a government and that
too if done in the fashion which China adopted can bring loathing and abomination
from every part of the world. It’s been 31 years since this menacing event at
Tiananmen Square took place but even now when I reminisce about this event, my
heart starts to quiver. This shows how tragic this event was. Plowing down the
protesters who are protesting for genuine reasons is one of the most inhumane and
callous events witnessed in the history of this world. Such kinds of practices, if not
stopped, will heavily endanger  a basic human right i.e. right to protest. Depriving
citizens of the right to protest is the same as killing their voices, thoughts, expressions
and sense of equity amidst the people. If a person is elected by the people as their
representative to end their troubles and does not represent them effectively. , people
should have all the right to come forward peacefully and show their dissatisfaction
towards the existing practices of government, but if the citizens are dispossessed of
such rights, this world would  be lacking in all dimensions of democracy, equality and
humanity.