Tiananmen Square self-immolation incident Tiananmen Square self-immolation incident The Tiananmen Square self-immolation incident took place in Tiananmen Square in central Beijing, on the eve of Chinese New Year on 23 January 2001. The incident is disputed; Chinese government sources say that five members of Falun Gong, a spiritual practice that is persecuted in mainland China, set themselves on fire in the square. Falun Gong sources disputed the accuracy of these portrayals, and claimed that their teachings explicitly forbid violence or suicide. Several journalists have suggested the self-immolations were staged. According to Chinese state media, a group of seven people had travelled to Beijing from
Tiananmen Square the Tiananmen Square protests in 1976 after the death of Zhou Enlai, and the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989 after the death of Hu Yaobang, the latter resulted in military suppression and the deaths of hundreds, if not thousands, of civilian protestors. One of the most famous images that appears during these protests was when a man stood in front of a line of moving tanks and refused to move, which was captured on Chang'an Avenue near the square. Other notable events include annual mass military displays on each anniversary of the 1949 proclamation until 1 October 1959; the 1984