Tiananmen Massacre Map Now In PDF

A new web site is providing downloadable PDF files of the map of Tiananmen Massacre. The maps are produced based on the previously published maps by Tiananmen Mothers.

The web site apparently intended their maps to be a special kind of tourist guide for people traveling for the Beijing Olympics:

Visitors to the Summer Olympic Games in Beijing will be in a city that fewer than twenty years ago was the site of a massacre of innocent civilians by their government. As you enjoy the athletic events and the sights of the city, you may find yourself at street corners, subway stops, in parks or near hospitals where ordinary Chinese men and women were murdered.

The site has no contact information but the Weekly Standard identified its creator as Ellen Bork and associates.

Protest Near Tiananmen Square

Just four days before the Beijing Olympics, about 20 residents of Beijing staged a protest march at Qianmen, just south of the Tiananmen Square. They were protesting against being evicted from their homes to make way of business development in the name of the Beijing Olympics. The protest did not last long as the crowd was quickly taken away from the scene.

Obviously, this protest happened at a sensitive area, instead of the remote "protest zones" set up by the Chinese government. There have been reports that several groups had applied but denied permission to stage protests within those designated zones.

Chen Ziming and Wang Juntao on Beijing Olympics

During his first oversea trip, Chen Ziming commented that he hopes the Beijing Olympics would be like the Seoul Olympics but feared that it may resemble more of the Berlin Olympics instead.

Chen Ziming was joined by his partner-in-crime Wang Juntao in a Guardian interview. Wang Juntao said it was simply "impossible" for the Beijing Olympics to lead China in opening up. "There are also other problems developed in China and they don't want the world to see it. So they have to close the door now."

Chen Ziming appeared unsure if he would be allowed to return to China at the conclusion of his trip, now that he had publicly criticized the government while abroad. He told the reporter, "Use my face. If I can peacefully return to China it will be an improvement, but if that does not happen it will be a regression." He was due to make his return in a couple of days, according to the article.

Activist Calls For An Olympic Pardon

The noted American human rights activist John Kamm, who had been working to track and release political prisoners in China, called for a pardon before the Beijing Olympics through his Dui Hua Foundation.

Zhou Fengsuo Harassed During the San Francisco Torch Relay

Fueled by the unrest and crackdown in Tibet, the Tibet Independence crowd has been the main force behind the protest against the Beijing Olympic torch relay in London, Paris, and San Francisco. Their voice and action has overshadowed many other concerns, including the human rights situation in China (besides Tibet), especially with the jailing of Hu Jia.

Perhaps bowing to the extreme nationalist sentiment, most Chinese dissidents in exile are in support of Beijing Olympics, with only few noted exceptions. They are also noticeably absent in any protest or support rallies during the Olympic torch relay.

But not for Zhou Fengsuo (周锋锁), one of the 21 Most Wanted student leaders after the 1989 massacre. A web site reported that Zhou was in San Francisco, attempting to protest the human rights and the Hu Jia case during the torch relay. But he and his friends were harassed and even beaten by the large pro-China crowd.

According to Zhou himself, they were near the AT&T park in the early morning. After they put on T-shirts with Hu Jia's picture and the words "Don't Forget June 4", they were quickly spotted by the crowd. He heard people asking each other: Are they "their people"?

They tried to talk about human rights issues on the crowd, but they were shouted down and separated. The crowd took away their flags and banners, which were made for the Tiananmen Massacre. One of them was hit at the back of head so hard that he is left bloody. There were police nearby but they chose not to interfere.

During the mayhem, Zhou also saw a few other people were beaten as well. One of them wore a white T-shirt and carried a black flag with the word "For Justice" on it. Zhou went to help him and learned his name is Leo.

Zhou recalled that he felt like he was in one of those crazy and violent mass abuse sessions during the Culture Revolution when he was constantly harassed, cursed, and pushed by the crowd.

Wei Jingsheng Calls on IOC to Act on China

Wei Jingsheng published an op-ed piece in Washington Post today, calling that the International Olympic Committee's refusal to take a stand against the Beijing crackdown on Tibetan protesters is "wholly unacceptable". He went on to warn that "If the IOC doesn't move to put pressure on Beijing consistent with its obligations, it risks this Olympics being remembered like the 1936 Games in Berlin."

Among the dissidents currently in exile, Wei Jingsheng is often alone in holding on positions that may appear to be radical and controversial. He has been consistently against having the Olympics in China, in contrast with almost all other dissidents.

Wei's article is also the single public voice, so far, from the dissident-in-exile community on the current Tibet riot.

Speak No Evil During the Olympics

It looks like the controversial mix of human rights and the Olympics will not be restricted just in China this year. British media is reporting that the British Olympic Committee is forcing a contract to their athletes, banning them from speaking up on China's human rights issues. Any athletes who refuses to sign the contract will not be allowed to travel to Beijing, or sent home right away should they be found in violation.

According to this report by the Daily Mail, New Zealand and Belgium have also censored their athletes, while countries including the United States, Canada, Finland, and Australia have pledged to stand by their athletes' rights of free speech.

Wang Juntao Links Hu Jia Case with Beijing Olympics

According to Epoch Times, Wang Juntao (王军涛), a prominent figure during the 1989 movement, thinks the recent arrest of Hu Jia is directly linked to the upcoming Olympics in Beijing. During an interview with the paper, Wang points out that the 2008 Olympics has in fact become a focal point for human rights in China. Therefore, the Chinese government wishes to control the dissidents and eliminate challenging voices before the Olympics.

Wang calls on the international society to pay close attention to the case and provide enough pressure to force the government to release Hu Jia.