Tiananmen Square - 1989 revisited - part 27

The 27th part in a PBS piece published in 2001 by Andrew J. Nathan and Perry Link:

Following June 4, 1989...

In September 1989, Beijing officials set up an exhibit at the city's military museum to explain why they had to forcefully end the "anti-government riot." It features more than 4,000 exhibits: burned out tanks and armored personnel carriers, photographs of soldiers who had been burned to death or hanged from overpasses, and photos of burning buses and clashes between students and police in riot gear. There is also a film depicting the army's efforts to restore order. The exhibit features some essays on democracy written by dissident Fang Lizhi, exhibited as an example of the misguided beliefs about Chinese communism that led to the demonstrations. It was one of the most popular sections of the exhibit because Fang's writings were banned.

Tim White