Chinese student rips down Tiananmen Square posters at University of Queensland

A Chinese international student has been caught on camera ripping down posters supporting Hong Kong democracy and criticising the regime.

As she tore down the posters on the Lennon Wall at the University of Queensland, she laughed about Uyghur Muslims being held in concentration camps 

The woman also dismissed the Tiananmen Square massacre as ‘lies’ that happened ’50 years ago’. The massacre actually happened in June 1989 – 33 years ago.  

When the woman, who has already torn down dozens of posters, realised she was being filmed, she said ‘Your camera has been on? 

‘You are ruining my liberty. I don’t want to show my face.’

‘I’m allowed to film here,’ the man said. 

‘I don’t want you to have a nice day,’ the woman replied.

‘I just want to show that I’m not (afraid) to show my freedom,’ she then said as she continued to rip down posters showing the 1989 massacre of students at Tiananmen Square in Beijing and the famous picture of a lone man blocking tanks.  

The man filming then calmly said: ‘I understand that and I will blur out your face, but can you tell me a bit about why you think it’s right to rip these down?’ 

A man stands alone to block a line of tanks in Tiananmen Square, Beijing on June 5, 1989.

The woman got very annoyed at this, raising her voice and saying: ‘Do you think you are right to tell these lies to the students, especially those teenagers?’

‘I don’t think they are lies,’ the man replied. 

‘I do think they are all liars and I think you have the time to figure out what lies to show here,’ she said. 

The man then points his camera to a picture, already partially ripped, of tanks in Tiananmen Square. 

‘Are you aware of what happened there?’ he asked.

‘Tanks?’ she replied. 

‘The massacre in Tiananmen Square?’ he prompts. 

‘No, I don’t know about that because it happened 40 to 50 years ago… It happened decades ago,’ she replied.

‘I’m just thinking about now, thinking about the future, the teenagers. 

‘What’s your big influence by this wall?’ she then asked.

‘I think the intent is to make them think twice…’ the man began, before being cut off.

‘About what?’ she interrupts sharply and loudly. 

‘I will show you what China is looking like,’ she said, pulling out her phone.

‘I appreciate your attitude about thinking twice, but I think I have the right to tell you the truth. 

A Chinese student at the University of Queensland (pictured) tore down dozens of posters that supported democracy in Hong Kong and China

‘You always told us that you are telling the truth and I saw that I think you are telling lies.’

She was unable to find anything on her phone that might explain ‘what China is looking like’ or to explain away concerns about human rights there.  

‘As far as I’m aware, there are Uyghur Muslims in concentration camps,’ the man continued. 

‘Concentration camps. Ha, ha, ha,’ she said, seeming to find the notion laughable. 

‘You have jails in Australia, you have jails in Australia.’