14th anniversary: Tiananmen Mothers Campaign' letter to the Supreme People's Procuratorate
June 4, 2003 - 03:00
On 29 May 2003, the victims and the families of the victims of the June Fourth massacre in 1989 issued two open letters addressing to President Hu Jintao, Premier Wen Jiabao and the Supreme People's Procuratorate respectively calling for an open dialogue with the new leadership and pressing for a thorough investigation to bring the former Premier Li Peng and other human rights perpetrators to court holding them accountable without impunity.
The Tiananmen Mothers Campaign supports whole-heartedly their appeals and demands. Since late last year, the campaign group has actively collected signatures in all over Hong Kong in support of the families and their demands as well as urging the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate for an investigation to bring hold legal accountability of the perpetrators and to redress the victims and their families on the issue.
The first piles of signatures collected through the past few years was mailed through Speedpost to the Supreme People's Procuratorate with the open letter to the Supreme People's Procuratorate.
Tiananmen Mothers Campaign' Letter To The Supreme Peoples Procuratorate
The Supreme People's Procuratorate of the Peoples Republic of China:
We are now submitting 22,381 signatures of Hong Kong citizens that we have collected since last December, requesting for a thorough investigation on the June Fourth incident to hold those responsible legally accountable and to redress on the issue and provide compensation for the victims and families members of the victims.
A group of family members of victims and victims suffered permanent disability in the massacre have been paying great effort all these years having collecting names of the death and testimonies from their family members as evidences of the brutal massacre. All these evidences demonstrate that there have been at least 11 were shot to dead when they were trying to rescue people or on the way carrying the injured to the hospital; at least nine killed on the streets or alleys in residential areas; at least six were shot to dead at home by the troops; at least six were beaten to death while they were protesting against the brutal acts of the troops; at least five were shot to death on spot when they were taking pictures; at least three were rolled over from the back by the tanks when they were retreat from Tiananmen Square. Looking at all these cases, it was very obvious that the killed civilians did not involved in any violent or armed acts but the then Chinese leaders deployed tens of thousands of troops to kill them brutally. This was an abuse of power of the government.
The injured and disabled victims and family members of victims had filed a petition to the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate in 1999 submitting testimonies as evidence requesting for a thorough investigation of the "June Fourth Incident" in order to bring to justice those responsible for the crimes of the massacre especially the then Premier Li Peng. Yet, they received no response from the Supreme Peoples Procuratorate. They have repeatedly issued open letters reiterating their request. Same still, the Chinese leaders and the higest procuratorate simply kept failing to provide any answer.
The struggle of these families and individuals to reveal the reality behind the massacre is not only about justice for the victims. It is also a vital part of the struggle for an accountable government in China which respects human rights and freedoms. This century's history has demonstrated time and again that the truth of major crimes by governments against their people will eventually be revealed, and that a lawful and just settling of accounts is inevitable.
The Tiananmen Mothers have refused to give up their fight against the impunity which has allowed perpetrators of human rights violations in China to go unpunished. They see their mission as going beyond the issue of their own childrens fate; their struggle is crucial in preventing such massacres and rights abuses from happening in the future.