Tienanmen Square: A Just Fight Against an Unjust Government

Their government was oppressing the people of China and the people were unable to speak up against it because of its strict laws and complete control of the country. Unfortunately, they had chosen the wrong government to oppose and several weeks after the beginning of the gathering, the government used martial law to clear out Tiananmen Square and thousands of people were killed. The people of China had been fighting for a just cause because the government used its absolute power in an unfair way to oppress its people. Through political, intellectual, and economic means, the communist government had an unconditional control over China.

The main reason that the people of China wanted to overthrow the government was because the Chinese government was extremely corrupt and the people could do nothing to stop this unfairness. First, the government was doing things to gain more money and power. Government officials were embezzling in the money of business owners and they were also giving their relatives promotions and special benefits.1 This angered the Chinese students because if they were ever to become wealthy business owners the government would just take their money as they pleased. And also, if they were to try to become a member of the government, it would be extremely unlikely that they would manage to land a job because the friends and family members of the higher up officials would have been taken up all the job opportunities. Secondly, there was no way to overthrow the government because the legal system was extremely unfair. Whenever someone tried to oppose the government, they would either be given an unusual punishment or would be sent to jail. As an unusual punishment, people could be sent to the countryside and forced to work as a peasant.2 This legal system stopped the people from opposing the government because if they were to try, they would only be forced into a miserable situation where they would not be able to live their lives to its fullest extent. Common people and even government officials were given these punishments for treason against the communist reign. Wei Jingsheng, an electrician at a zoo, tried to oppose Deng Xiaoping’s rise to power and was sentenced many years in prison. Hu Yaobang was removed from office when he refused to stop a different protest several years before. All in all, the people of China were powerless against their government’s rule over them and they had the right to protest for their rights.