JUNE 4 CANDLELIGHT VIGIL IN HONG KNG

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 O 02 HONG KONG 002311

SIPDIS


DEPARTMENT FOR EP AND EAP/CM
NSC FOR DENNIS WILDER

E.O. 12958:DECL: 06/05/2031
TAGS: PHUM PGOV PREL PINR HK
SUBJECT: JUNE 4 CANDLELIGHT VIGIL IN HONG KNG

REF: JUNE 4 ZAISER-GOLDBERG EMAIL

Classifed By: E/P Section Chief Simon Schuchat; Reasons 14 (b, d)


1. (C) Summary: According to ong Kong's "Alliance in
Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China," their
annual candlelight vigil to commemorate the anniversary of
the June 4, 1989 military suppression in Beijing's Tiananmen
Square drew a crowd of 44,000 on Sunday evening, slightly
short of last year's attendance of 45,000. Alliance
organizers and other Hong Kong-based democracy activists,
including Han Dongfang, Robin Munro, and Lee Cheuk-yan,
expressed delight at the turnout and noted the importance of
continuing to mark this anniversary. Veteran democracy
activist and Alliance Chairman Szeto Wah addressed the vigil,
followed by broadcasts of recorded messages from the
Tiananmen Mothers organization and Tiananmen Square leader
Wang Dan. Earlier on June 4, Hong Kong Cardinal Joseph Zen
led a prayer session during which he called on the Beijing
government to "return a fair judgment" to those who had
sacrificed their lives in the incident. Meanwhile, Hong Kong
Chief Executive Donald Tsang, traveling with a business
delegation in southern China, opined publicly that during the
seventeen years since June 4, 1989, the economic growth in
the mainland had "brought prosperity and economic benefits to
Hong Kong" and the intervening time allowed the Hong Kong
people "to reflect on the incident in an objective
perspective." Tsang also denied press reports that he had
attended a May 1989 pro-democracy concert in Hong Kong, just
a few days prior to the June 4 crackdown. End Summary.


2. (C) On June 4, Hong Kong's "Alliance in Support of
Patriotic Democratic Movements in China" organized their
annual candlelight vigil to commemorate the anniversary of
the June 4, 1989 military suppression of pro-democracy
demonstrators in Beijing's Tiananmen Square. As such
ceremonies are banned in the PRC, the Hong Kong event is the
only large-scale activity held to mark this anniversary.
According to press reports and the vigil's organizers, the
90-minute rally drew a crowd of 44,000, which despite
forecasts of rainy weather was nearly equal to last year's
attendance of 45,000. Alliance Vice Chair and Legco member
Lee Cheuk-yan told the media that he was "delighted" with the
turnout. Also attending the event, independent democratic
Legislative Council member "Longhair" Leung Kwok-hung told
poloff that he was quite happy and impressed with the turnout.


3. (SBU) Veteran democracy activist and Alliance Chairman
Szeto Wah addressed the vigil, followed by broadcast of
recorded messages from the "Tiananmen Mothers" organization
and Tiananmen Square leader Wang Dan. This year, in addition
to the past themes of "release imprisoned dissidents,"
"reverse the unjust verdict of June 4," "end one-party rule,"
and "build a more democratic China," the speakers added a new
topic: "support the civil rights campaign in mainland China."
Numerous organizations, including the "Hong Kong Human
Rights Monitor," "Project Civil Referendum," "The Frontier,"
"Human Rights in China," the "Civil Human Rights Front," and
"Falun Gong" participated in the event. The crowd included
many elderly as well as young people, with numerous families
with children attending as well.

Cardinal Zen Comments
--------------


4. (SBU) Hong Kong Cardinal Joseph Zen led a prayer session
attended by about 120 people prior to the vigil, during which
he called on the Beijing government to "return a fair
judgment" to those who had sacrificed their lives in the
incident. Also on June 4, Zen, in an interview with the "New
York Times," asked rhetorically "if they (the PRC Government)
had listened to the kind advice of the students and workers,
would today's country be a better country?" Zen did not
attend the candlelight vigil.

Han Dongfang: "We Must Not Forget"
--------------


5. (C) On June 5, "China Labour Bulletin" Director Han
Dongfang, who was imprisoned on counter-revolutionary charges
in the PRC following the June 1989 Tiananmen military
crackdown, told poloff that continuation of the annual
candlelight vigil in Hong Kong was very useful and extremely
important; otherwise, there would be no pressure at all on
the PRC government. He believed that "morally, we must not
forget these important historical incidents." Han said that
while he did not focus on the number of participants in the
annual vigil, he nevertheless had been "surprised" at the
previous day's heavy turnout. Han's colleague, Robin Munro,

HONG KONG 00002311 002 OF 002


told poloff that the turnout was "quite impressive" for a
17-year anniversary, and opined that the 20-year
commemoration in 2009 would bring a much larger number of
participants.

Press Coverage
--------------


6. (SBU) The Hong Kong media gave the event prominent text
and pictorial coverage. In a June 5 editorial, the
independent "Hong Kong Economic Journal" expressed confidence
that the verdict on the June 4 incident eventually would be
reversed. The pro-democracy "Apple Daily" said the
candlelight vigil demonstrated the continuing opposition of
the Hong Kong people to the 1989 crackdown in Beijing. The
independent "Ming Pao" called on the Beijing government to
adopt a humanitarian approach and to offer compensation to
the people who were killed, injured, or arrested, as a means
to achieve social harmony. The pro-Beijing "Ta Kung Pao" and
"Hong Kong Commercial Daily" did not cover the event, while
the pro-Beijing "Wen Wei Po" focused on the "unenthusiastic
response" of the Hong Kong people and the "overstated"
turnout claims made by the vigil's organizers.

Where Was Donald?
--------------


7. (C) Hong Kong Chief Executive Donald Tsang, leading an
80-member delegation of business leaders, departed from Hong
Kong on June 2 for a visit to Guangxi and Yunnan Provinces.
Speaking to the press in Kunming on June 4, Tsang said that
in the seventeen years since June 4, 1989, the economic
growth in the mainland had "brought prosperity and economic
benefits to Hong Kong." That time also allowed the Hong Kong
people "to reflect on the incident in an objective
perspective." On June 5, Tsang denied press reports, quoting
Szeto Wah, that he had attended a May 27, 1989 pro-democracy
concert in Hong Kong, just a few days prior to the June 4
crackdown. Tsang said that he happened to be dining in the
vicinity of the concert on that evening, but had not attended
the event. At that time, Tsang was a director of
administration in the Hong Kong colonial government and was
barred from joining political activities.

CUNNINGHAM
Cunningham