Tens of thousands of people in Hong Kong held candles and sang songs of democracy yesterday to mourn those who were killed when Beijing sent in tanks to crush a pro-democracy movement in Tiananmen Square 15 years ago.
Some Hong Kong activists drew parallels between the Tiananmen Square campaign for democracy in Beijing in 1989 and their own efforts to press the Chinese government for greater freedom today.
"Reverse the verdict on June 4," the crowd chanted during the rally in the former British colony, referring to Beijing's stand that the Tiananmen Square uprising was "a counter-revolutionary rebellion".
"End one-party rule. Return power to the people," the crowd shouted.
Hong Kong and the former Portuguese enclave of Macau are the only China-controlled territories allowed to commemorate the 1989 Tiananmen movement, which ended when tanks rolled into Tiananmen Square, killing hundreds, maybe thousands, on June 4, 1989.
Democracy activists in Hong Kong regularly mark the Tiananmen anniversary, but this year thousands more attended after China turned down demands that Hong Kong people be allowed to elect the city's leaders and legislators from 2007.
Organisers said 82,000 people turned up for the vigil in the city-centre Victoria Park, almost double last year's 45,000.
"Power must be returned to Hong Kong people, and power must also be returned to Chinese people!" protest leaders shouted.
Candle-holding mourners bowed three times to pay respects to victims of the 1989 crackdown.
"I am furious with the Chinese Communist Party. It has been oppressing us but it can never suppress our hearts," said Chan Fong, 60, one of the participants.
She said she had made a special effort to come because she was upset with what Beijing had done to pro-democracy forces in Hong Kong.
The vigil ended late last night.
Hong Kong and Macau returned to Chinese rule in 1997 and 1999 respectively, with guarantees they would enjoy a high degree of autonomy and wide-ranging freedoms.
Just before the Hong Kong vigil, an outspoken Hong Kong Roman Catholic bishop, Joseph Zen, urged citizens to join a protest march on July 1 to press for greater democracy.
"It is not a bad thing. I don't agree with people who say there will be more chaos after marches. There will be chaos if marches are not allowed," Mr Zen told reporters.
Earlier, a prominent democracy activist warned that younger people in Hong Kong would become increasingly defiant if Beijing persists in suppressing aspirations for more democracy.
"It was a defiant movement in 1989 and it is also a defiant movement in Hong Kong now, it is the same struggle," said lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan.
"We demand more democracy and we demand that China honours its promise to give Hong Kong more democracy."
Fearful that Hong Kong's demands for more democracy may spin out of control, Chinese officials have begun a campaign to discredit pro-democracy figures before legislative elections in September.
Human rights and legal experts have said Beijing is reneging on its promises to Hong Kong at the time of the handover by Britain.
"If China goes on like this, suppressing aspirations in Hong Kong, I'm afraid our younger generations will not accept it. They will be more defiant than we are now," Mr Lee said.