This evening, the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, alongside Speaker Kevin McCarthy, held a roundtable event commemorating the 34th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square Massacre. The event featured powerful testimony from democracy and human rights activists Wei Jingsheng and Hengqing “Henry” Li.
Mr. Wei Jingsheng is a Chinese human rights activist and dissident, who played a significant role in the 1978 Democracy Wall protest, placing his real name and address on an essay he wrote that promoted democracy as part of China’s development and criticized the CCP. The CCP imprisoned Wei for 18 years.
Mr. Henry Li was a focal student leader in the 1989 Beijing Pro-Democracy Movement. After the Tiananmen Square Massacre, the CCP arrested him and sentenced him to one year in prison. Following his release, he has spent more than 30 years in political life working to promote democracy and human rights in China.
Find highlights from the remarks of Speaker McCarthy, Chairman Mike Gallagher, Ranking Member Raja Krishnamoorthi, Wei Jingsheng, and Hengqing “Henry” Li below.
Speaker McCarthy:
“Freedom is human. So it’s important we never forget the day of Tiananmen Square… As lawmakers… we stand for freedom everywhere… and when we speak, we are speaking in one voice.”
Click HERE for downloadable video of Speaker McCarthy’s remarks.
Chairman Gallagher:
“We saw the CCP’s brutal face on live TV, and what did we do? We rewarded them…It’s not just remembering something that happened 34 years ago, it’s about learning lessons for our current time.”
Click HERE for downloadable video of Chairman Gallagher’s remarks.
Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi:
“When Chairman Xi Jinping says he will ‘crack down hard on… enemy forces,’ he is telling the world that the CCP will send those tanks against anyone who stands up for freedom…Today, we say with one voice…no more. No more…We…speak for freedom.”
Click HERE for downloadable video of Ranking Member Krishnamoorthi’s remarks.
Wei Jingsheng:
“I wish the American people would consider changing to a new policy… if you will not change China, then Xi Jinping will change you.”
Click HERE for downloadable video of Wei Jingsheng’s remarks.
Hengqing “Henry” Li
“34 years ago- when Tiananmen Square happened – I was there. Our Chinese people – we still want to protect our rights. [But now] so many people are put in jail and… the labor camps — so much more than the 1980s.”
Click HERE for downloadable video of Hengqing Li’s remarks.
Click HERE to read Chairman Gallagher’s opening remarks.
