Resisting Totalitarianism with Memory, Passing the Torch of Freedom: Over a Hundred Gather in the Netherlands to Commemorate the 37th Anniversary of June 4th as Overseas Dissidents Refuse to Forget
(Amsterdam, June 10, 2026) —— While the candlelight in Hong Kong's Victoria Park has been forcibly extinguished by the National Security Law, the spark of freedom continues to burn on European soil. On the afternoon of June 6, over a hundred Chinese overseas pro-democracy activists, anti-CCP volunteers, dissidents, and supporters from various backgrounds gathered at the National Monument in Dam Square, Amsterdam, to hold a solemn commemoration for the 37th anniversary of the June 4th Tiananmen Square Massacre.
In the cool wind and rain, the square was framed by a 4.5-meter-tall "Pillar of Shame" banner crafted by Danish artist Jens Galschiøt, a 2.5-meter-wide "Tank Man" poster, and a massive 6-meter banner reading: "Inherit the democratic spirit of June 4th, continue the candlelight of Hong Kong's Victoria Park—Never Forget June 4th." Attendees dressed in somber black laid out graphic posters on the ground detailing the history of the 1989 pro-democracy movement and the ensuing massacre. In the name of mourning, they demonstrated to the world the immense resilience of the overseas Chinese community in pushing back against the CCP's totalitarian brainwashing and refusing to let history be erased.
Awakened Insiders: Breaking the Silence with Truth
The rally began in solemnity. Hosting the event was Rao Xing, a representative of Voice of Anti-CCP NL. Notably, he is a former member of the Chinese Armed Police. After seeing through the true nature of the CCP's dictatorial system, his conscience awakened, and he chose to stand on the front lines of resistance.
In his opening remarks, Rao Xing recalled the bloody spring and summer of 37 years ago with a steady, powerful tone:
"Thirty-seven years ago, countless Chinese students, intellectuals, workers, and ordinary citizens gathered peacefully in Tiananmen Square, calling for democracy, freedom, and an end to corruption. But what waited for them was not dialogue, but violent military repression. Even today, the Chinese authorities still try to hide and erase this history, but history cannot be erased."
Rao Xing led the crowd in a two-minute silence for the victims of June 4th and all those who sacrificed their lives in the pursuit of freedom, followed by the laying of white flowers at the base of the Pillar of Shame banner. He declared to the world: "Today, standing on free soil, we send a clear message: We refuse to forget. We use memory to resist tyranny, and truth to break the silence."
Following him, Li Zhaodong, Chairman of the Chinese Democratic Party Netherlands Headquarters, profoundly analyzed the devastating impact of the June 4th massacre on China's social development. He pointed out that the bloody crackdown not only ended the political reforms and ideological enlightenment of the 1980s but also birthed a violent "stability maintenance" model that continues to this day. Without democratic oversight and a free press, the CCP's economic reforms rapidly degenerated into an alliance of capital and power, leading to severe bureaucratic corruption. Li led the crowd in chanting: "Down with the Communist Party! Vindicate June 4th! End one-party dictatorship!"—voices that reverberated across Dam Square.
Digital Totalitarianism and the Hope for a Fear-Free Future
The CCP's 37-year "state-sponsored amnesia project" attempts to keep the younger generation completely ignorant of this history. However, the youthful faces and the voices of dissidents at the rally proved the failure of this endeavor.
Li Qiuliang, a dissident from Gansu, shared a poignant story about the hidden scars carried by the older generation. He first learned of the 1989 protests from his high school politics teacher—a former participant who had traveled to Beijing during the movement. Because of this background, the teacher was placed under constant surveillance, stripped of his right to teach history, and relegated to teaching politics.
"Though he rarely spoke of it publicly, I could feel the profound pain and unresolved trauma in his expressions," Li recalled.
After bypassing the Great Firewall in his twenties and watching the documentary footage of the massacre, Li Qiuliang realized how far China had strayed from the open and tolerant society his generation had hoped for. "A nation can only truly move toward the future if it dares to face its past," Li noted, emphasizing that commemorating June 4th is a steadfast defense of freedom, dignity, and universal human values.
Yu Yang, a post-90s youth and member of the Chinese Democratic Party, shared his shock and anger upon seeing a June 4th documentary for the first time in 2019 after learning how to bypass the Great Firewall. "The silence of one generation becomes the ignorance of the next. This is exactly how forgetting takes shape. Today we gather here not just to look back at history, but to oppose forgetting."
Yan Jun, a VPN technician from Wuhan, used his personal experiences to expose the horrors of the CCP's "digital totalitarianism." He endured long-term harassment and transnational intimidation by CCP police for operating VPNs and creating tutorials to bypass censorship. He described how high-intensity lights were directed into his windows late at night, waking his infant child. "In a massive system with real-name registration and zero privacy, I was already completely transparent. The most painful part is not fear itself, but the uncertainty of when danger will strike." Yan Jun stated that he stepped forward to speak out so that the next generation would not have to live in fear.
This yearning for a fear-free future for the next generation resonated strongly in the speech by Hao Wangyong, a dissident from Gansu. As a supporter of liberal democracy and a Christian, Hao delivered a deafening call:
"I will not forget June 4, 1989, when countless young students and citizens peacefully petitioned for democracy, freedom, and anti-corruption in China, only to be met with a bloody massacre by the Chinese Communist Party. History cannot be forgotten; the truth cannot be covered up. I stand here at Dam Square in Amsterdam today not for hatred, but to commemorate the brave, and to call for China to embrace democracy, the rule of law, human rights, and freedom of belief, so that our next generation can live in a society free from fear!"
At the end of his speech, Hao led the crowd in chanting, "Down with the Communist Party, down with Xi Jinping," demonstrating a fearless will to resist. Echoing this sentiment, Li Qiuliang, another dissident from Gansu, remarked that a nation can only truly move toward the future if it dares to face its past.
Calling Out Across the Distance: An Interrogation of the Soul for PLA Veterans
Among the many speeches, the address by Wei Zhijian, a Guangxi independence activist and member of the Chinese Democratic Party, was particularly moving. He pointed his criticism directly at the military personnel who executed the massacre orders, calling out across the ocean to the veterans from rural backgrounds.
"Thirty-seven years have passed, and I solemnly appeal to you: Please, bravely step forward and speak the truth of what happened! Back then, many of you were just simple youths from rural areas, blinded by lies and coerced by orders. The hands that should have protected the people were forced to pull the trigger. For 37 years, have the gunshots and bloodshed of that night remained your lingering midnight nightmare?"
Wei Zhijian incisively exposed the cold-blooded nature of the CCP system: "In the eyes of the system, you are cannon fodder during wartime and beasts of burden during peacetime, discarded once used up. Only by bravely speaking the truth can you achieve human awakening and the salvation of your souls!" He emphasized that only by ending the one-party dictatorship and realizing constitutional democracy and fair social security can grassroots veterans truly have a dignified future.
On-Site Clashes: A Hong Konger's White Flowers and a "Little Pink" Disruptor
Two unscripted incidents at the rally vividly illustrated the fierce clash between human conscience and state brainwashing overseas.
The Hong Konger's Tears and White Flowers During the event, a passing Hong Konger stopped to look at the posters on the ground. After learning from a volunteer distributing flyers that it was a June 4th memorial, he wept openly and walked away in silence. However, a short time later, he returned to Dam Square holding a bouquet of pure white flowers. Under the gaze of the crowd, he solemnly offered the flowers to the victims of the massacre. This scene deeply moved everyone present, embodying the volunteer's remark: "Though the candles in Victoria Park have been extinguished, tears have turned into action, and the spark of freedom has been carried to every corner of the world, refusing to be forgotten!"
The Provocation of a "Little Pink" In stark contrast, a pro-CCP Chinese woman (a "Little Pink") suddenly inserted herself into the gathering to maliciously disrupt the event. With a mocking laugh, she shouted: "Haha! It's been 37 years and you're still doing this every year? You're just troublemakers paid by the West to smear China! Massacre? That's all fake news and rumors!" Faced with such cold-blooded remarks, the young protesters did not back down. They raised their phones to record her and fiercely fired back: "Thousands of innocent students and citizens were shot dead, how dare you deny the massacre? You're brainwashed, you're defending murderers!" Amid the firm, roaring chants of "Never forget Tiananmen" from the crowd, the woman eventually walked away in frustration. This brief confrontation accurately reflected the necessity and urgency of overseas pro-democracy activists insisting on holding memorial events and telling the truth of history against the CCP's propaganda machine.
Conclusion: Passing the Torch, Unending Resistance
The two-hour rally concluded with the singing of "Flowers of Freedom" and the crowd chanting, "We want freedom, we want democracy, we want human rights! We want ballots, not dictators!"
For these exiled pro-democracy activists, anti-CCP volunteers, and dissidents, June 4th is not just a painful date on the calendar, but a clarion call to action. No matter how severe the CCP's transnational repression becomes, or how deafening the noise of its foreign propaganda gets, they will stand as unwavering as the "Never Forget June 4th" banner fluttering in the square. Through their actions, they submitted their answer to history: Totalitarian tanks may crush human bodies, but they can never crush the human soul's pursuit of freedom and dignity.
More photos:
