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Article: Beijing's Warnings Backfire; Threats Galvanize Apathetic Students
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- May 2, 1989
- Author:
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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China's new student democratic movement has become a powerful
force here in part because government threats to crack down on the
protesters backfired and galvanized apathetic students to join their
classmates marching down the streets of Beijing, reform activists
say.
Just two weeks ago, many Chinese students were indifferent and
unwilling to join the few thousand who demonstrated immediately after
the April 15 death of former Communist Party chief Hu Yaobang, a
liberal reformist. His death served as a catalyst for the current
democratic movement.
But, activists say, the Chinese government and police made
several mistakes that persuaded many students who had been sitting on
the fence to ...