Chinese paramilitary police march onTiananmen Square in Beijing. (AFP image)
On the occasion of 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, the US said on Thursday that China needs to "learn from history and not hide from it" and asked Beijing to make progress on the human rights front, matching its development on the economic front.
"This anniversary provides an opportunity for Chinese authorities to release from prison all those still serving sentences in connection with the events surrounding June 4, 1989," US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a statement issued on the occasion.
China should cease the harassment of participants in the demonstrations and begin dialogue with the family members of victims, including the Tiananmen Mothers, she said.
"We would prefer to see a China that is prepared to learn from history rather than trying to hide it. I mean, I think it is remarkable in some of the coverage that we have seen this week how some elements of their population are roughly unfamiliar with what happened 20 years ago," Assistant Secretary of State for Public Affairs Philip J Crowley said.
"This is inconsistent with the actions of a great power," he said.
The June 4, 1989 protest by students and intellectuals at the Tiananmen Square were sparked by the death of a pro-democracy leader Hu Yaobang. China brutally suppressed the pro-democracy protests in which hundreds of people were killed.