홍콩에 남아있던 마지막 '천안문 대학살 추모비' 홍콩대학에서 완전히 없어졌다. 중국본토의 천안문광장에서 1989년에 발생했던 민간인 대학살을 위해 탱크로 밀었던 잔인함의 극치를 보여주었던 공산당의 잔악함을 보여주었던, 마지막 상징물이었었는데....
중국의 천안문광장에서 일어났던 대량학살을 추모하는, 사람들에게 잘 알려져 있던, 기념비가 오늘부로 홍콩대학에서 완전히 철거됐다.
홍콩대학에 자리하고 있었던 기념비는 베이징 천안문광장에서 있었던 대량학살을 가장 잘 묘사했던 유일한 상징물이었었는데, 홍콩에서 마지막으로 남아 있었던, 1989년도의 피비린내나는 대량학살을 추모해왔던 이 모뉴멘트가 목요일 아침에 완전히 자취를 감추게 된 것이다.
홍콩대학에서 추모비가 없어짐으로써, 중국 본토와 비교해서 많은 자유를 즐겼던 자취가 없어졌다는 뜻으로, 자유는 그지킬만한 힘이 있을때에만 가능하다는것을 심감케 해준 사건이었다.
천안문 대량학살을 상징하는 8미터 높이의 기둥탑은, 50명의 희생자들의 시체가 서로 엉키고 헝클어진 당시의 참상을 묘사한 내용이었는데, 네델란드의 조각가 Jens Galschioet씨가, 1989년도 6월4일에 천안문광장에서 자유를 수호하겠다고 목숨을 걸고 시위하던 시위데를 진압하기위해 군대를 동원하여 무참히 시민들을 학살당하는 그순간을 상징적으로 묘사하기위해 조각했던 추모비였었다.
홍콩대학교의 학생, Billy Kwok군은 '더럽고 수치스런 기둥' 으로 상징되는 추모비는 많은 학생들이 지난 20여년간 공부하면서 그참상을 기억하던 곳이었었다고 회상한다.
"추념비는 홍콩에서는 자유롭게 하고싶은 말을 맘데로 표현할수있는 상징이었었다"라고 추모비가 완전히 철거된 후에 그곳을 응시하면서 설명했다.
홍콩대학의 Wang Luyao군은 여러면에서 다른 착찹한 반응을 보였다.
"나는 중국본토에서 넘어와 살았기에, 수치의기둥을 이해하는데는, 홍콩출신의 학생들이나 또는 홍콩주민들이 느끼는것보다 훨씬더 깊게 가슴에 와 닿는다. 정말로 나에게는 현실의 참상이다. 나에게는 그기둥은 공산당의 잔인함을 이해할수있는 상징물로 많은 것을 보여주는 상징물 같았다. 홍콩대학에게는 역시 같은 뜻의 상징물로 여겨지는 추념비 였었다"라고.
물질의 부족함없이 살아가는 우리 대한민국의 젊은이들이, 이번홍콩의 학생들과 주민들이, 자유를 살얼음위를 걷는 안타까움으로 누리고 있었던 상징물의 깊은 뜻을 이해한다고 할수 있을까?
4.19때 또는 군사정부 시절에는 많은 우리의 젊은 대학생들이 자유를 되찾기위해 학업을 전폐하면서 거리로 나와 투쟁을 했었는데, 그러한 폐기와 용기는 지금은 전연 볼수 없다는점이 너무도 안타깝다. 진정한 자유와 국민들의 삶이,내편 네편으로 갈려 패거리 싸움을 일삼는 문재인과 그찌라시들에 의해 무참히 짖밟히고 있는데도, 나와는 상관 없다는, Selfish mind로 무장되여 있는 한심한 광경을 보면서 억장이 무너질 뿐이다.
철없는 대학생들아, 자유를 빼앗기면 너희들 먹거리마져도 없어지게 된다는것을 명심하라.
A woman walks past the site where the "Pillar of Shame" statue used to stand after the pillar was removed at the University of Hong Kong, Thursday, Dec. 23, 2021. The monument at the university that commemorated the 1989 Tiananmen massacre was boarded up by workers late Wednesday, prompting fears over the future of the monument as the city's authorities crack down on dissent. (AP Photo/Vincent Yu)
HONG KONG (AP) -- A monument at a Hong Kong university that was the best-known public remembrance of the Tiananmen Square massacre on Chinese soil was removed early Thursday, wiping out the city's last place of public commemoration of the bloody 1989 crackdown.
For some at the University of Hong Kong, the move reflected the erosion of the relative freedoms they have enjoyed compared to mainland China.
The 8-meter (26-foot) -tall Pillar of Shame, which depicts 50 torn and twisted bodies piled on top of each other, was made by Danish sculptor Jens Galschioet to symbolize the lives lost during the military crackdown on pro-democracy protesters in Beijing's Tiananmen Square on June 4, 1989.
Billy Kwok, a University of Hong Kong student, said the Pillar of Shame has been treated as part of the university by many who studied there. It had been standing at the university for more than two decades.
"It's the symbol of whether (there is still) ... freedom of speech in Hong Kong," he said after the sculpture was taken away.
The university said it had asked that the sculpture be put in storage because it could pose "legal risks."
"No party has ever obtained any approval from the university to display the statue on campus, and the university has the right to take appropriate actions to handle it at any time," it said in a statement after its removal.
Each year on June 4, members of the now-defunct student union would wash the statue to commemorate the massacre. The city, together with Macao, were the only places on Chinese soil where commemorations of the crackdown were allowed.
Authorities have banned annual Tiananmen candlelight vigils for two consecutive years and shut down a private museum documenting the crackdown. The group that organized the annual vigil and ran the museum, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, has since disbanded, with some of its key members behind bars.
The dismantling of the sculpture came days after pro-Beijing candidates scored a landslide victory in Hong Kong legislative elections, following amendments to election laws allowing the vetting of candidates to ensure they are "patriots" loyal to Beijing.
Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam traveled to Beijing this week to report on developments in the semi-autonomous Chinese city, where authorities have silenced dissent following Beijing's imposition of a sweeping national security law that appeared to target much of the pro-democracy movement following mass protests in 2019.
The Pillar of Shame became an issue in October, when activists and rights groups opposed a university demand that it be removed following "the latest risk assessment and legal advice." Galschioet offered to take it back to Denmark provided he would not be prosecuted under the national security law, but has not succeeded so far.
Galschioet said he has been promised a spot for the sculpture in a park across from the Chinese Embassy in Washington, D.C., and was also offered places in Norway, Canada and Taiwan.
He compared the removal of the sculpture to "driving a tank through Arlington Cemetery," a burial ground for American war veterans.
"Grave desecration is also very frowned upon in China, but that's really what it is. It is almost a sacred monument," he said. "It is a a sculpture for those who died."
Danish Foreign Minister Jeppe Kofod said its removal was another worrying development in Hong Kong.
"The Danish government cannot decide which art other countries' universities choose to exhibit. But for me and the government, the right to speak peacefully -- through speech, art or other means -- is a completely fundamental right for all people. This is also true in Hong Kong," he said.
An employee at the university, Morgan Chan, said removal of the Pillar of Shame "doesn't mean that history will be erased, and removing the pillar doesn't mean people won't learn about the history."
Wang Luyao, a student, had a more mixed reaction.
"To me, because I am from mainland China, perhaps my understanding of the Pillar of Shame is not as deep as the locals or students from Hong Kong and it is not that significant to me," Wang said.
"For me, it's like a landmark which provides an approach to understanding. For the University of Hong Kong, it should also be considered a landmark."
https://www.cp24.com/world/last-monument-for-tiananmen-massacre-removed-in-hong-kong-1.5717758
No comments:
Post a Comment