June 4th | 是六四啊

日子只要一到了六四，又有新感觸。

第一個感觸是幹（請原諒我對歲月流逝的驚訝）！是第31年嗎？

年復一年，我會寫點什麼紀念六四，通常我以為這樣就夠了，尤其是當我一次次看到香港維園的燭光，總以為這段歷史會永遠在一個城市永久流傳。然維園的紀念活動沒能迎來它的第三十年，儘管今年香港人還是盡其所能的擺滿武警的城市裡找到縫隙點亮蠟燭（包括維園），但香港的燭光還能再撐三十年麼？

回學校讀書這兩年，最常討論的字是populism，就是台灣人常常掛在嘴上的民粹主義。學術界的民粹主義已經有所謂的2.0版本——就是韓國瑜崛起這一版。民粹主義2.0版往往伴隨著大量新聞操作，於是一個國家往往被分為兩種版本，每一種版本都有輿論支撐，每一種版本裡受害者委屈都是真實的，每一種版本中人們要起而對抗的都是邪惡的。於是連歐盟這樣號稱民主是基石的地區，當中許多執政黨上台第一件事就是買媒體，反對黨的優先要務亦然，買不起就邀請外國勢力共襄盛舉，先是舊時鐵幕國家，現下連奧地利還是義大利都紛紛加入，有輿論才能成王。

因此，我難免要想起六四天安門事件以及柏林圍牆倒塌的那個年代，記者們槍林彈雨冒死拍攝的真實，而我們是多麼團結一致的相信新聞畫面裡的人們所追求的信仰。在那個年代，我們對民主的共同期待、對極權主義的同仇敵愾、對學運失敗的惋惜還有為六四那一夜留下的眼淚都是真心的。

然整個世界再也回不去了。

昨天有人問如果中國人都不在意中國人的命，為什麼如今台灣人或香港人還要在意六四？我猜那是因為記得六四不只是強調民主人權等等的普世價值，也是為了提醒世界：六四只是開場，這三十年來中國政府只有更壞而已。

Year after year, I write something about 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on the day of June 4th. A small piece of writing is enough — this is what I thought when I every time saw the news of the annual candlelight vigil to commemorate the anniversary of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown in Hong Kong. However, after COVID-19 outbreak, and after Beijing decided to enforce their National Security Law in Hong Kong, candlelight will be a history (or not, just like that the June 4th doesn’t exist in Chinese territory). I wonder if a short paragraph is so enough that let us remember the history?

Haruki said that “between a high, solid wall and an egg that breaks against it, I will always stand on the side of the egg.”

I once sincerely believed it.

However, the side that gets to represent these “eggs” is gradually becoming a question mark in today’s world. Populism blurs the boundary between the people’s voice and the actual voice that is evoked by fake news and the politicians behind it.

31 years ago, we saw something happen in Tiananmen Square and the Berlin Wall. We watched it on TV. We believed what we saw and were willing to stand up for it.

Things have changed, of course. Today, two full generations of Chinese can’t even see “6.4” on any internet website; and many European countries are also seeing their elected government try to (or already) control the media.

It seems that reminding with history is the only way to remember what we should stand and fight for.

Why should we remember this date?

Sometimes I feel whatever China is doing is not my business. But regarding the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests and MASSACRE, I cannot and never will keep out of the affair. It is always about universal human rights, but it’s beyond that.

Today, to remember June 4th 1980 is to remind the world that CCP never changes its nature of the regime.