China to pay recompense

[Michelle]

China payment for 1989 victim a first: activist

Sun Apr 30, 2006

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese authorities have made a payment to the

mother of a youth killed during the 1989 crackdown on mass protests,

the first time that a victim's family has been compensated, a rights

activist said on Sunday.

Tang Deying campaigned for 17 years to win redress since her son,

Zhou Guocong, died in police detention on June 6, 1989, in Chengdu,

capital of Sichuan province, a Chengdu-based activist told Reuters

on Sunday.

Chengdu police recently gave Tang 70,000 yuan ($8,735) as "hardship

assistance", activist Huang Qi, who has publicized her case,

announced on his Web site (www.64tianwang.com) on Saturday.

He and other Chinese rights campaigners said it appeared to be the

first substantial compensation paid to relatives of a victim of the

crackdown.

Ding Zilin, a Beijing professor whose teenage son was shot dead by

troops in 1989, said authorities might be making concessions to

ensure a "harmonious atmosphere" as the anniversary of the June 4

crackdown looms, the Hong Kong-based Apple Daily reported on

Saturday.

Zhou, a 15-year old factory worker, was detained after soldiers and

police staged a nationwide sweep against protesters and bystanders

caught up in the anti-government protests that erupted in Chinese

cities in 1989, paralyzing administration and dividing the ruling

Communist Party.

The Party leadership ordered troops to move on Beijing's Tiananmen

Square, the epicenter of the protests, early on June 4. Hundreds,

perhaps thousands, of demonstrators were shot dead in the capital,

and thousands of citizens were detained across the country,

international human rights groups say.

Zhou was riding his bicycle home from work when police detained him,

according to a complaint lodged by his mother.

Zhou died after being beaten in a police cell, she said. Photos of

his corpse showed bruises and cuts, but he was cremated without an

investigation. Since then Tang has waged a constant campaign of

petitions and visits to officials in a bid to win redress for her

son.

Huang said the case might not presage other compensation payments to

the families of crackdown victims.

"This was a special case because we have the photos on the Internet,

and because his mother was so persistent," Huang said.

He said Tang and other members of Zhou's family did not want to

speak to the media, fearing recriminations.

http://today.reuters.com/news/articlenews.aspx?

type=worldNews&storyid=2006-04-30T073221Z_01_PEK143037_RTRUKOC_0_US-

CHINA-COMPENSATION.xml

[Dr. Shane]

Well, I guess that is a move in the right direction. It was a terrible tragidy.

[Michelle]

Of course, officially, nobody was killed by the patriotic soldiers in Tiananmen square (it's interesting to go there and look for the newer, less-discolored squares of cement and the bases on some of the monuments and stairs that were replaced after the "incident."). Which is why I find this fascinating.

The families are not allowed to talk to anyone about their children. They are not allowed to sweep the graves. They are not allowed to talk to foreigners. That's why this case really amazes me!

M