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Tiananmen critics detained
04/06/2007 09:56 - (SA)
Beijing - Chinese authorities maintained tight security on Monday's sensitive anniversary of the Tiananmen Square crackdown, with several dissidents detained or under house arrest, rights activists said.
At least a half-dozen people have been rounded up in the past few days as security personnel carried out their annual clampdown ahead of the anniversary, said Hu Jia, a leading Chinese activist.
"(Authorities) are once again trying to stifle critics during the anniversary," Hu said, with other rights activists in China and Hong Kong reporting similar efforts to silence or intimidate dissidents.
Hu said that among those confined to their home was Zhang Xianlin, a member of the Tiananmen Mothers, a group of mothers of those killed or imprisoned.
Hu said he was also being prevented from leaving his home.
Detained after interview
Pu Zhiqiang, a lawyer and former student demonstrator, said he had visited the square on Sunday night and was detained for several hours after doing an on-air interview with Voice of America radio.
Security was also tight on Tiananmen Square although there were no large-scale gatherings, with a typical assortment of Chinese and foreign tourists wandering around the huge plaza that is at the political heart of China.
The Tiananmen massacre remains one of China's most sensitive issues, and the nation's rulers maintain a strict ban on anything but the official version of the events being discussed in the state-run press.
Hundreds, if not thousands, of people are believed to have been killed when Chinese troops were sent into Tiananmen Square on June 4 1989, to quash weeks of student-led democracy demonstrations.
International criticism
China's communist rulers have said the crackdown was necessary to maintain public order and ensure economic growth, but the violence and its continued handling of the issue continues to attract international criticism.
The United States on Friday issued an unusually frank warning to China that its hosting of the Olympics could be marred by its poor human rights record, most notably its failure to acknowledge the Tiananmen massacre.
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