Hong Kong ( AsiaNews / Agencies) - About 3
thousand people braved the scorching heat of Hong Kong to commemorate the 25th
anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. Lee
Cheuk- yan, chairman of
the Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, which organized
yesterday's event, said he was "very satisfied" with the turnout -
double the 1,600 who marched last year. "Hongkongers see the June 4 vigil as
more important than the march so I think they will still come out on Wednesday
to remember June 4" He was referring to the great vigil held on the eve of June 4 every year to remember those
who died in 1989.
The
protesters braved the approximately 33.2 degrees in the afternoon and marched from Victoria Park to the offices
of the local government in Admiralty . During
the event, the group came face to face with the counter-demonstration of the
" Campaign for the truth about the June 4" , a pro - Beijing group
that believes that the 1989 repression was
"reasonable" in view of the great achievements of China following its
suppression of democracy.
The
two groups exchanged insults until police intervened to calm tensions. Choi
Suk-fong, a former journalist who witnessed the killings in Tiananmen Square,
said activists who defended Beijing were "hurting the victims' families a
second time". At
the end of the march, a group of about 200 people tried to enter government offices
in a toy tank.
After
being stopped by the police, one of them - former teacher Hon Lin -shan - said:"If you
think this toy tank is dangerous, then you [police] are more immature than
kindergarten students ... the only thing dangerous is the Communist Party. Police
have a responsibility to serve the people."