Tiananmen’s 21 Most Wanted List

Tiananmen’s 21 Most Wanted List

On June 13, 1989 the Beijing Public Security Bureau released an order for the arrest of 21 student leaders of the 1989 Tiananmen Square protests. These 21 most wanted student leaders were part of the Beijing Students Autonomous Federation which had been an instrumental student organization in the Tiananmen Square protests. Prominent leaders such as Wang Dan, Wu’er Kaixi and Chai Ling topped the list. Immediately after the release of the list, only 7 out of the 21 Most Wanted escaped China, with assistance from the Hong-Kong based organization, Operation Yellowbird. Though decades have passed the Most Wanted list has never been retracted by the Chinese government.

The Official Release

The Beijing Public Security Bureau issued the 21 Most Wanted list with the following description:

“The illegal organization "Beijing Students Autonomous Federation" instigated and organized the counter-revolutionary rebellion in Beijing. It is now decided to pursue 21 of its head and key members, including Wang Dan. After receiving this order, please immediately arrange investigation work. If found, immediate arrest the targets and inform the Beijing Public Security Bureau.”

Photographs with biographical descriptions of the 21 Most Wanted followed in this order on the poster:

1) Wang Dan, male, 24, from Jilin, student of the Department of History at Peking University, 173cm tall. Thin hair and slim build, wearing glasses. Beijing accent.

2) Wuer Kaixi, male, born on February 17, 1968, from Xinjiang, student of the Department of Education at Beijing Normal University. 174cm tall, long face, big eyes, thick lips, often wearing green army pants.

3) Liu Gang, male, 28, from Liaoyuan City, Jilin Province, former graduate student of Department of Physics at Peking University, now unemployed. 165cm tall, square face, and a northeastern accent.

4) Chai Ling, female, born on April 15, 1966, Han nationality, from Rizhao City, Shandong Province, graduate student of Department of Psychology at Beijing Normal University. 156cm tall, round face, high cheekbones, short hair, white skin.

5) Zhou Fengsuo, male, born on October 5, 1967, Han nationality, Chang'an County, Shaanxi Province, student of Department of Physics, Tsinghua University. 176cm tall, square face, pointed chin, heavy eyebrows.

6) Zhai Weimin, male, 21, from Xin'an County, Henan Province, student of Beijing Institute of Economics. 168 cm tall, thin build, long-face, dark complexion, and heavy Henan accent.

7) Liang Qingdun, male, born on May 11, 1969, from Pengxi, Sichuan Province, student of Department of Psychology at Beijing Normal University. 171cm tall, lean, darker complexion, rectangular face, small eyes, high nose, thick lips, speaks Mandarin.

8) Wang Zhengyun, male, born in October 1968, and lives in Nanke District, Jinping County, Honghe Prefecture, Yunnan Province. Student of Central Institute of Nationalities (Minzu University of China). 167cm tall, thing and long-faced, dark-yellow eyes, small dots, and Yunnan accent.

9) Zheng Xuguang, male, 20, is a native of Mi County, Henan Province, who lives in No. 56, North Lane, Huancheng West Road, Xi'an, student of Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics. 181cm tall and weighing 63 kilograms, long round face, sharp chin and big ears.

10) Ma Shaofang, male, born in November 1964, from Jiangsu, student of Beijing Film Academy. 167cm tall, lean, long-faced, sharp chin, dark complexion, and glasses.

11) Yang Tao, male, 19, from Fuzhou, Fujian Province, student of Department of History at Peking University. 170cm tall, thin, high cheekbones, wears glasses, speak Mandarin.

12) Wang Zhixing, male, born in November 1967, from Shanxi, student of the China University of Political Science and Law, lives in Shanxi Yuci City Textile Industry School. 169cm tall, long hair and glasses.

13) Feng Congde, male, 22, from Sichuan, graduate student of Institute of Remote Sensing at Peking University. Lean, darker complexion, large nose.

14) Wang Chaohua, female, 37, graduate student of Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. 163 cm tall, relatively thin, with a relatively flat face, triangular eyes, short hair.

15) Wang Youcai, male, born on June 1966, from Zhejiang, graduate student of Department of Physics at Peking University.

16) Zhang Zhiqing, male, born in June 1964, from Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province, student of the China University of Political Science and Law.

17) Zhang Boli, male, 26, from Wang Kui County, Heilongjiang Province, student of Peking University. More fat, round face, thick lips, northeastern accent.

18) Li Lu, male, about 20, student of Nanking University. 174 cm tall, medium build with square chin and prominent lower teeth.

19) Zhang Ming, male, born in April 1965, from Jilin, student of Department of Auto Engineering at Tsinghua University.

20) Xiong Wei, male, born in July 1966, from Yingcheng County, Hubei Province, student of Department of Radio at Tsinghua University. Lives in Beijing.

21) Xiong Yan, male, born in September 1964, from Hunan, graduate student of Department of Law at Peking University. Lives in Hunan Shuangfeng County.

The 21 most wanted student leaders faces and descriptions were broadcast on television as well and were constantly looped . Arrests were also broadcasted, such as that of Most Wanted #21, Xiong Yan.

Aftermath

Each of the 21 students faced diverse experiences after their arrests or escapes, while some remain abroad with no intent to return, others have chosen to stay indefinitely such as Zhang Ming.

Arrests

Only 7 of the 21 were able to escape, the remainder of the 21 student leaders were apprehended and incarcerated. Zhou Fengsuo was turned in by his own sister and arrested on June 13, 1989 in Xi'an. He was imprisoned for one year before being released in 1990 due to international pressures, along with 97 other political prisoners. Some served longer sentences than others, such as Wang Dan, one of the most visible leaders during the protests topping the most wanted list. Wan Dang continued his activist efforts after his parole release and was subsequently sentenced to 11 years for subversion. Liu Gang, who was arrested in Baoding in mid June, attempted to organize his fellow prisoners in defiance, by conducting a hunger strike. He had his arms lashed behind his back in a harsh position for several days while in prison.

Escapes

Many of those who initially escaped from the most wanted list were assisted by Operation Yellowbird and fled to the West. Those who escaped remain in exile today and have opened up about their experiences. Zhang Boli, number 17 on the list wrote a book titled "Escape From China" that details his experience during the protests and his escape. Those who escaped, whether it was in 1989 or after, generally have had difficulty re-entering China, even up to this day. The Chinese government prefers to leave the dissidents in exile. Those who attempt to re-enter, such as Wu’er Kaixi, have been simply sent back, but not arrested. In 2009, Xiong Yan, number 21 on the list, returned to China with a visit to Hong Kong, a special administrative region of China, in order to mark the 20th anniversary the Tiananmen protests. Xiong Yan spent 19 months in jail, after his release he fled to the United States where he keeps in touch with Tiananmen activists and participates in pro-democracy events. Xiong was invited the the southern Chinese enclave by the Hong Kong Alliance, which has been holding annual candlelight vigils on the June 4 anniversary Tiananmen protests. Many of the 21 who are in exile have joined human rights organizations or are now engaging in private business.

Obscure Dissidents

Not all of the 21 most wanted are as well known as Chai Ling or Wang Dan. Others such Zhang Zhiqing have essentially disappeared. After his initial arrest in January 1991 and subsequent release, nothing further is known about his situation and where he lives now. Zhang Zhiqing’s role and reason for being listed on the list of 21 most wanted is generally unknown, this is the case for many others on the list such Wang Chaohua. Other dissenents that are not as well known to the public include Zhou Fengsuo and Wang Zhengyun. Zhou Fengsuo was a physics student at Tsinghua University and a member of the Standing Committee of the Beijing Students Autonomous Federation during the protests. Fengsuo was turned in by his sister and arrested on June 13, 1989 in Xi'an. He was imprisoned for one year before being released in 1990 due to international pressures, along with 97 other political prisoners. Leaving China for the United States, he attended the University of Chicago. Steady in his activist roots he co-founded Humanitarian China, an organization that promotes rule of law in China and also raises money for Chinese political prisoners. Wang Zhengyun was a student of the Central University for Nationalities and was the only member of the Kucon ethnicity minority group to be studying at a university. Zhengyun was arrested on July 1989 and released two years later. He was sent back to his village in the Yunnan countryside. In December 1998, Wang was one of 19 dissidents, including Zhai Weimin, who staged a hunger strike to protest the oppression of CDP members and other dissidents.

Ma Shaofang and Yang Tao are another pair of dissendents that lack public attention despite their constant activist efforts. Ma Shaofang was a student of the Beijing Film Academy during the protests and turned himself in on June 13, 1989. In October 1990 he was sentenced to three years in prison for counterrevolutionary incitement. In May 1994 he participated with Wang Dan and other dissidents in a petition to the National People’s Congress calling for a reassessment of June 4th. He has had issues in attempting to open a business and has had a series of short lived jobs ever since and is living in Shenzen. Yang Tao, who was at one time the head of Beijing University’s Autonomous Student Federation, remains in China today. He was initially charged as being an instigator of the counterrevolutionary rebellion and imprisoned for one year on June 16, 1989. In 1998, he wrote an open letter asking for the release of Wang Youcai His continued efforts landed him in prison in 1999 after lobbying for the government to reverse the labeling of the protest as a “counterrevolutionary rebellion”. He was originally arrested on charges of “incitement to overthrow state political power.” However, due to lack of evidence he was indicted on amended charges of tax evasion on December 23, and on January 5, 2003 was sentenced to four years in prison. He was released in May 2003. Yang too, has had trouble earning a living.

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