Tiananmen Square Flashcards
What were the students’ three demands?
- Greater Freedom of Speech
- Authority to organise student unions
- An end to government corruption
What did Hu Yaobang do?
Prevented students from being jailed and arranged for buses to take them back to their universities
How did government officials react in response to the improvement of the economy in 1988?
They used their position/influence to get rich often by taking bribes, which angered the public
What is corruption?
when a powerful entity, usually a government, is dishonest, unfair, or fraudulent
How did the students outsmart the government when they wanted to close the square?
By gathering the night before and camping overnight
How did the students gain international exposure?
1000 foreign journalists came to cover the meeting with Mikhail Gorbachev, so the students put white headbands on and declare a hunger strike, which is shown on Western media
What is martial law?
Police/army take control
After military law was declared, what was used against the students?
Tanks, armed soldiers, real bullets instead of rubber ones
What caused the Chinese Red Cross to shut down?
The Chinese government did not like them spreading news of the deaths
What does Tiananmen Square tell us about China?
The government is authoritarian; they are not afraid to kill their own people to reinforce their power and reach their economic goals
