On January 16, 2026, the group “Tiananmen Mothers,” representing the families of the victims of the June Fourth Incident, was for the first time prohibited from holding their Chinese New Year gathering. The “Tiananmen Mothers” have expressed their condemnation from overseas.
Human Rights in China announced on January 16th on X that they were releasing the latest news on behalf of the “Tiananmen Mothers” group and included an article.
In their article dated January 14th, the “Tiananmen Mothers” wrote: “Our annual Chinese New Year gathering has been unreasonably obstructed by the government and banned for the first time.”
The New Year gathering to celebrate the Chinese New Year is a tradition of the “Tiananmen Mothers” group, initially starting as a small gathering in 2009 and continued uninterrupted except for the three years during the COVID-19 pandemic. The article mentioned that the memories of the June Fourth Incident are a permanent pain in every family’s heart, and the annual gathering brings warmth to all attendees. When notified and in good health, family members endeavor to attend these gatherings.
This year, the gathering was scheduled for December 28, 2025, at a restaurant near Chongwenmen in Beijing to celebrate the New Year and Chinese New Year. However, it was canceled by the authorities using administrative measures without any legal basis. This year saw the highest number of participants with a total of 42 attendees, including 6 first-time participants.
The article reflected on the past 36 years, where many parents left this world with regrets, and some spouses and disabled individuals also passed away due to illnesses. The young wives who bravely shouldered the responsibility of raising children with their own shoulders back then have now become elderly individuals aged over 60.
The article criticized the authorities for not only failing to acknowledge the massacre of innocent people during the 1989 student movement and showing sincerity in addressing the June Fourth Incident and engaging in dialogue with the family members of the victims but also abusing their power to disrupt the citizens’ legitimate social rights. “We cannot accept this.”
The article concluded by stating, “Justice and righteousness are on our side, and we will not give up our dignity and citizens’ rights!”
Online users expressed their support for the Tiananmen Mothers group with comments like:
“The CCP is on the brink of collapse! Live well, everyone! The CCP can never take away the spirit of freedom! It will only perish after losing the people’s hearts and minds…”
“To the mothers, I wish you good health! Live each day full of hope! Everything will eventually be fulfilled!”
“36 years, not even allowing the elderly mothers to hug. We will never forget June Fourth – the blood not dried, people not fallen, light leaking through the cracks, destined to illuminate the whole wall.”
The “Tiananmen Mothers” group, initiated by Ding Zilin, Zhang Xianling, You Weijie, and others who are family members of the victims of the June Fourth Incident, aims to unite the mothers of the victims to demand justice, thoroughly investigate and disclose the truth of the June Fourth Incident, and seek apologies from the families of the victims. At its peak, the group consisted of over two hundred members.
Several members of the “Tiananmen Mothers” group visited the Wan’an Cemetery in Beijing’s Haidian District on the morning of June 4th last year to lay flowers in memory of the deceased loved ones, but their commemoration activities were closely monitored. According to insiders, the Chinese security contacted the family members in advance on the evening of June 3rd, explicitly prohibiting the use of mobile phones, cameras, and other electronic devices during the commemoration.
On June 4th last year, shortly after 9 a.m., plainclothes police officers were patrolling around Wan’an Cemetery, taking photos and registering the identities of individuals entering the cemetery area, even implementing a ban on photography in certain sections to prevent any potential memorial activities from being known or spread.
According to a friend of one of the mourners, Mr. Wang, the mourning ritual lasted about 30 minutes. After the mourning, these elderly mothers exchanged quiet words of farewell, bowed their heads, silently left, and were then escorted back home by police cars.
Around the time of last year’s June Fourth anniversary, the “Tiananmen Mothers” publicly released a joint open letter signed by 108 family members, urging the government to conduct an independent and fair investigation into the June Fourth Incident, disclose the full list of victims, compensate the affected families, and hold relevant legal responsibilities. The letter expressed, “We are afraid we may not live to see that day.” Sadly, in just the past year, several members of the “Tiananmen Mothers” group have passed away.