China must “sincerely repent” for the bloody crackdown on pro-democracy demonstrators in and around Tiananmen Square three decades ago, Taiwan said on Monday, as a Chinese newspaper said nobody in China was interested in dragging up the past.
Tuesday marks 30 years since Chinese troops opened fire to end the student-led unrest. Chinese authorities ban any public commemoration of the event on the mainland and have never released a full death toll. Estimates from human rights groups and witnesses range from several hundred to several thousand.
“China has to sincerely repent for the June 4 incident and proactively push for democratic reforms,” Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council said in a statement likely to infuriate China “We earnestly admonish the Chinese authorities to face up to the historical mistake, and sincerely apologise as soon as possible.”