Silence and heavy security in China and Hong Kong mark 35th anniversary of the Tiananmen crackdown

By KEN MORITSUGU and KANIS LEUNG
Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) — Security in Beijing is tight around Tiananmen Square as China marks 35 years since a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests. China has long quashed any public memory of the military crackdown on monthslong protests at the heart of its capital. Hundreds, if not thousands, are believed to have been killed in an overnight operation that ended on June 4, 1989. It was a turning point in modern Chinese history as Communist Party hard-liners embraced control instead of political reforms. On Tuesday, Hong Kong police arrested four people and swarmed others who tried to protest or commemorate. With vigils silenced in Hong Kong, commemorative events have grown abroad. Hundreds turned out in Washington, D.C., London and Taiwan to mark the anniversary.