Ex-PLA Officer Warns Taiwan of Potential Tiananmen-Style Crackdown

Taipei: A former officer in China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) who witnessed the aftermath of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre has warned that Taiwan could face a similar fate if China attempts to unify the country by force. Li Xiaoming, who was deployed to Beijing as a junior officer during the crackdown, said Taiwanese people should study the massacre carefully, because it offers a glimpse of what Beijing is willing to do to suppress dissent. According to Focus Taiwan, Li Xiaoming expressed that "What happened in Tiananmen Square could happen in Taiwan too." In an interview with CNA on May 22, ahead of the massacre's 36th anniversary, Li emphasized that if Taiwanese students or young people were to protest, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could respond similarly to how it did on June 4, 1989, using tanks and machine guns. The Tiananmen Square massacre, which occurred on the night of June 3 and extended into the early hours of June 4, 1989, followed weeks of peaceful student-led protests calling for democratic reforms, media freedom, and free speech among other demands. Li recounted his experience during that period, noting that the Chinese military used tanks and live ammunition to clear the square, resulting in the deaths of hundreds, possibly thousands, of unarmed civilians, as revealed by declassified U.S. government documents. Although the event shocked the world, it remains a taboo topic within China. At that time, Li was stationed in northeastern China as head of a radar station under the PLA's 39th Army Corps, shortly after graduating from a military academy. On May 20, his unit was ordered to deploy to Beijing to protect foreign embassies near the square. Li's unit, part of the PLA's elite, was expected to be among the first to enter Tiananmen for what was described as an "evacuation mission." However, on June 3, their commander, Xu Feng, conducted reconnaissance and reported witnessing soldiers firing at protesters. Li believes Xu's crisis of conscience led to a deliberate delay in the unit's advance, resulting in their non-participation in the main assault. When Li and his unit eventually entered the square on June 5, they encountered no bodies, only piles of trash, bloodstained clothing, pants with bullet holes, and tank tracks. Li, now 61, feels compelled to speak out, viewing the Tiananmen massacre as a pivotal moment in China's history and a warning to the world. He is the only former PLA soldier to have publicly shared his account among the many former protesters and civilians who have spoken over the years. After receiving asylum in the early 2000s, Li became an Australian citizen and first shared his story at a 2002 event in New York organized by the NGO Human Rights in China. Despite the widespread broadcast of the massacre footage at the time, discussion remains tightly restricted in China. Li understands why people within China might be unaware of the events due to strict censorship and lack of access to independent information. However, he is more troubled by overseas Chinese who kno w the facts but defend the CCP's actions. Li argues that having different political opinions is normal in a democracy, but defending the CCP's brutal crackdown in the face of facts demonstrates a lack of humanity. Li shared that the Chinese leadership learned vital lessons from Tiananmen: to maintain absolute military control and suppress perceived threats early. He noted that China now spends more on domestic "stability maintenance" than on national defense to protect the regime. In 2019, Li visited Taiwan to attend a memorial event marking the 30th anniversary of the massacre, where he met then-President Tsai Ing-wen. Li praised Tsai's administration for highlighting Taiwan's security challenges internationally, emphasizing the need to bring the Taiwan issue to the world stage for assurance of its security. He urged Taiwanese people to consider the massacre not just as Chinese history but as a potential preview of Taiwan's future. Li warned that the threat posed by China is no longer mere rhetoric, as it is backed by military force, cautioning that any forced unification would result in the imposition of authoritarian rules on Taiwan. Li concluded by stating that looking back at historical events is essential to ensure such tragedies never occur again.