Thirty-six years ago, the world watched in horror as the Chinese government violently suppressed a student-led pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square. This June 4th, Canada, through its embassy in China, issued a poignant statement commemorating this tragic anniversary.

“We won’t forget June 4, 1989,” the embassy declared in a social media post. The message continued, expressing solidarity: “We remember those who made their voices heard peacefully in Tiananmen Square. We stand with those who do so today.”

The events of June 3rd and 4th, 1989, unfolded after weeks of demonstrations calling for democratic reforms in China, a nation then under four decades of communist rule. The People’s Liberation Army’s brutal crackdown resulted in a devastating loss of life; estimates of casualties range from hundreds to thousands.

While China’s state-run media heavily censors accounts of the massacre, the international community continues to remember the victims and to advocate for human rights and freedom of expression in China. Canada’s statement serves as a powerful reminder of this ongoing commitment to remembrance and global human rights.