Tiananmen tragedy mothers say govt hints at payment, but no apology

Mothers of civilians killed during pro-democracy protests near Tiananmen Square more than two decades ago said on Tuesday authorities had raised the issue of compensation but offered no apologies or public account of the military crackdown.

A group of 127 mothers signed a letter, drafted ahead of Saturday's 22nd anniversary of the military sweep of protesters in Beijing, which said public security officials had approached one unnamed victim''s family twice since February about payment.

"The visitors did not speak of making the truth public, carrying out judicial investigations, or providing an explanation for the case of each victim. Instead, they only raised the question of how much to pay..." the letter said.

On June 4, 1989, after weeks of protests in Beijing's Tiananmen Square, troops backed by tanks crushed the  demonstrations, prompting global condemnation.

The government has never released an official casualty count, but estimates from human rights groups and witnesses range from several hundred to several thousand dead.

Yang Dongquan, head of China's State Archives Administration, told reporters on Tuesday that the government had put a 30-year lock on documents from the period.

"We're still in a waiting period," he said, on a rare official trip for foreign media to his department, hidden down an unassuming back ally in central Beijing.

"We've not yet reached the time to open them up," Yang added. "The rules state 30 years, at least. It can still be delayed even after 30 years, if the archive authorities decide it. It's the same rule for every country."

After the crackdown, the government called the movement a "counter revolutionary" plot, but has  more recently referred to it as a "political disturbance".

The Tiananmen mothers say they have documented 203 people killed in the crackdown, but that many victims and their families have not been identified.

The group has campaigned for years for the government to open dialogue and publicly acknowledge the victims, but says its grievances have mostly been ignored despite individuals being subject to surveillance and "personal restrictions".

"The bottom line is this: the souls of those killed during June Fourth shall not be defiled; their families shall not be dishonoured... all matters can be discussed except these two," the letter said.

The anniversary of the June 4 protests comes as popular uprisings have swept across the Arab world in recent months, making the ruling Chinese Communist Party jittery about any sign of instability at home.

Issued through the US-based advocacy group Human Rights in China, the letter said the mothers were surprised that officials had initiated "private, individual conversations" with families at a time when the government is skittish about instability.

"The Chinese government has referred to these popular protest movements categorically as "turmoil"; at no point has it mentioned the calls for freedom and democracy.

"It is afraid that the situation in the Middle East and North Africa will spread to mainland China, and worried that it will give rise to events similar to the 1989 Democracy Movement," they said, adding that the human rights situation in China was at its worst since the 1989 protests.