Tiananmen Square Massacre Timeline by Hamza Sigat

Background to Unrest

hamzas27399 — 2025-05-19 19:55:26 UTC

The people of China were fustrated due to a lack of political freedom and many economic problems under the one-party communist rule. which fueled the people to protest. The government tried to introduce reforms during the 1980s introducing small bits of capitalism but the people were still poor.

Martial Law Declared

hamzas27399 — 2025-05-19 20:05:45 UTC

On May 13 1989 students started a hunger strike which inspired protests all over China. The government got uncomfortable particularly because they disrupted a visit from a Soviet Leader so they declared Martial Law and sent in 250,000 troops. By the end of May, over a million people were protesting in Tiananmen Square, and the whole world was watching through news coverage.

Tienanmen Square Massacre

hamzas27399 — 2025-05-19 20:08:24 UTC

When the military couldn’t stop the protests, the Chinese government sent in troops who opened fire on the crowd in Tiananmen Square, killing and arresting thousands. The violent crackdown shocked the world, leading to international condemnation and economic sanctions against China.

Tiananmen Square Tank Man

hamzas27399 — 2025-05-19 20:11:20 UTC

A man stood infront of a column of Chinese tanks blocking them on June 5th. He is renowned for his bravery as the “Tiananmen Square Tank Man.”

National Day

hamzas27399 — 2025-05-19 20:13:56 UTC

After world war 2 China went through a civil war and by 1949 the Communist Party, led by Mao Zedong, took control and created the People’s Republic of China. They celebrated this big change in Tiananmen Square on October 1st-a holiday called National Day that’s still a huge annual event there, and Mao’s tomb is even in the square.

Tiananmen Square Censorship

hamzas27399 — 2025-05-20 16:38:50 UTC

During the 20th anniversary of the massacre the Chinese Government blocked access to social media and news outlets. Despite that thousands attended the 30th anniversary but sources say those who attended where arrested