Bullets and Opium: Real-Life Stories of China After the Tiananmen Square Massacre

by Liao Yiwu

“A series of harrowing, unforgettable tales...Had [Liao Yiwu] not fled the country in 2011, they may never have emerged. An indispensable historical document.” —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

From the award-winning poet, dissident, and “one of the most original and remarkable Chinese writers of our time” (Philip Gourevitch) comes a raw, evocative, and unforgettable look at the Tiananmen Square massacre through the eyes of those who were there.

For over seven years, Liao Yiwu—a master of contemporary Chinese literature, imprisoned and persecuted as a counter-revolutionary until he fled the country in 2011—secretly interviewed survivors of the devastating 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. Tortured, imprisoned, and forced into silence and the margins of Chinese society for thirty years, their harrowing stories are now finally revealed in this gripping and masterful work of investigative journalism.

Genres: China, Nonfiction, History, Asia, Biography, Politics, Asian Literature

322 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2012

About the author

Liao Yiwu is a writer, musician, and poet from Sichuan, China. He is a critic of the Chinese regime, for which he has been imprisoned, and the majority of his writings are banned in China. Liao is the author of The Corpse Walker and God Is Red. He has received numerous awards for his work, including the prestigious 2012 Peace Prize awarded by the German Book Trade and the Geschwister-Scholl-Preis in 2011 for the publication of his memoir in Germany.

Reviews

[Audrey · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is an important book, not necessarily an enjoyable book. The author was a political prisoner who eventually found asylum in Germany. This book is the collection of interviews of other prisoners connected to Tiananmen Square. Not many were willing to go on record for fear of reprisal. The Chinese Communist Party is an evil, oppressive regime, and the point of the book is to make sure the world knows it.

You can find very few books or films on Tiananmen Square. The Chinese government successfully censors such things even in other countries. Hollywood doesn’t want to offend China for fear of losing business/viewership; same with publishers. I found six items in the library catalog. There are hundreds of items for any other subject, but only six for Tiananmen.

Each of the prisoners has a similar story, and I could not keep their names straight. They would be put in prison, eventually tried and convicted on madeup charges in kangaroo courts, and spend any number of years in prison. Beatings were common, usually accompanied by electric prods. The prisoners were forced to work 18+ hours a day making products used by Western countries.

Most of the prisoners were Beijing residents who supported the student uprising. No one knows how many were killed; the government’s official count is laughably low. After prison, they found society had changed. People had sold out to economic opportunities offered by the government. Ideals didn’t matter anymore.

* * * *

The carnage lasted hours and the city’s hospitals overflowed with the dead and dying. The message was clear: This will not be tolerated. Ever.
Since then, China’s course has been set: economic development, yes, an open society, no. The government has banned, arrested, and jailed people who tried to set up new political parties or even write about the need for change. It has brought the Internet to heel by deploying thousands of censors. And it has pushed its ambitions abroad by funding Western universities and think tanks and drawing up blacklists of people who mention its deeds. These are the bullets it uses to silence opponents.
The opium is the benefits of economic growth—the real prosperity that makes many people inside and outside of China wary of rocking the boat. For many around the world, China has become an alluring model, and its many apologists, including leading Western political leaders, happily eat from its trough.

“On the outside everything looks normal, but my heart just can’t get past it, not until the victims of the June Fourth tragedy are acknowledged. I don’t want anything. I just want them to be acknowledged.” (Pu Yong)

“Before, everybody was patriotic. Today, since all people care about is money, it looks like it will be a long time before the Communist Party falls.” (Lei Fengyun)

It doesn’t matter if you search me, strip me naked, or violate and search my a–hole. I have more dignity than any policeman because I write, I record, and I do my own countersearch of their filthy, perverted souls. If one day I am stripped of the ability to write, then I can still play my flute, then I can still sell my art, and I can stand around screaming and yelling at the top of my lungs. It gives me a reason to go on living.

[Megumi Terui · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't even know where to begin reviewing this book...
Typically one learns about the Tiananmen Massacre as a student movement, but this book brings focus into the other people involved in the protests, the so-called thugs. Learning about their lives, their imprisonment, the way it has affected their lives and those around them... It is heartbreaking and at the same time enraging.
How pervasive this was and yet you can be in Beijing and not know... You can walk by day after day by the places named in this book and not a single reference found. And the chapter on Liu Xiaobo is just... Too sad.
I cannot recommend it enough to anyone who is interested in the topic, regardless of how much you know (or think you do) about this event.

[Vanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bezpříkladná sbírka rozhovorů s “výtržníky”, které čínský režim uvěznil a týral po masakru na náměstí Nebeského klidu. Z větší části se jedná o dělníky, kteří se snažili zabránit Čínské lidově osvobozenecké armádě, aby pronikla až ke studentům na samotném náměstí. Příběhy lidí, kteří se o politiku nikdy moc nezajímali, ale cestou do práce se připletli k tak ohavnému násilí, že se v nich cosi vzpříčilo a rozhodli se mu postavit. Liao hovořil i se studenty, umělci, disidenty či téměř náhodnými kolemjdoucími, rozmlouval i sám se sebou a nyní zprostředkovává svým čtenářům náhled do fungování čínské “justice”, věznic (v nichž muklové v nelidským podmínkách, o hladu, spánkově deprivovaní a vystavovaní nekonečným násilnostem, vyrábějí latexové rukavice na vývoz či osmnáct, dvacet hodin denně pletou svetry), popisuje osud jejich rodin, návrat do společnosti a místy i nečekaně intimní detaily o neschopnosti propuštěných sžít se se světem, který na ně venku čeká. Neskutečné čtení, myslím, že jsem přišla o poslední zbytky iluzí, že se v Číně za posledních dvacet let něco podstatnějšího začalo měnit. Mrzí mě jen, že ženám je zde hlas propůjčen pouze v dodatcích, ve kterých matky zmasakrovaných synů útržkovitě popisují své pátrání po ostatních pozůstalých. Velmi by mě zajímalo, jestli režim ženy pronásledoval stejným stylem jako muže, to se zde bohužel nedozvíme, ale ani si nic takového po po autorovi netroufám požadovat, já jen trnu nad odvahou a vytrvalostí jeho i ostatních, dříve bezejmenných, hrdinů, protože jinak se jejich kuráž snad popsat nedá. Nepředstavitelně silné vyprávění.

[Marta · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tutaj tylko tłem są wydarzenia na placu Tiananmen, autor opisuje czas w więzieniu, powtarza te same historie po kilka razy, nie przybliża powodu, dlaczego w ogóle te wydarzenia miały miejsce, skupia się bardzo mocno na sobie, a wręcz wydaje się jakby na siłę próbował przekonać czytelnika, że jego krzywda była największa. Cała książka to wywiady z mężczyznami powiązanymi z 4 czerwca, jednak odnoszę wrażenie, jakkolwiek okropnie to zabrzmi, że oni tak naprawdę niewiele mają do powiedzenia. Z tych rozmów jedna lub dwie wydały się naprawdę wartościowe i wnoszące coś nowego. Reszta to po prostu bełkot, oskarżanie wszystkich wkoło, niesamowita nienawiść do kobiet, spowodowana ich problemami z erekcją chociażby.
I oczywiście, to wszystko przybliża nam brzydką prawdę życia po masakrze, traumę która wyniszcza ludzi, to że nie wszystko wyglada jak na amerykańskich filmach, gdzie po bohaterach wszystko spływa jak po kaczkach, ALE wybaczcie nie będę zachwycona książką w której bezrefleksyjnie opowiadane są historie gwałtu na własnej żonie. Autor bez zażenowania pyta o takie rzeczy które w tej książce naprawdę nie są potrzebne. Mocno się zawiodłam.

[Hiroto · Rating 3 out of 5]

Recueil de témoignages extrêmement intéressants sur le massacre perpétré durant la nuit du 3 au 4 juin 1989 à Pékin. Les horreurs décrites sont incroyables de cruauté, et il est parfois difficile de les lire.
Par contre, je referme ce livre et je ne peux m'empêcher de me poser une question : où sont les femmes ? On ne me fera pas croire que parmi les "contre-révolutionnaires" émeutiers, il n'y avait aucune femme. Elles ne sont évoquées qu'à la toute fin de l'ouvrage, lorsque l'auteur parle des misères sexuelles des anciens détenus après un long "séjour" (ahah) en prison, et là qu'en tant qu'objets de fantasme.

A l'heure des gilets jaunes et des révoltes à Hong-Kong, un excellent recueil sur des gens ordinaires qui se sont révoltés contre le Pouvoir le temps d'un instant.

[Kathie Yang · Rating 4 out of 5]

It feels wrong to give this less than 5 stars because of the atrocities described in it, and I want to clarify that this work is immensely important as a documentation of something much of China wants to ignore or forget. I only take off a star because I didn’t like to read it. Many parts of it were extremely graphic and awful, as is true to their experiences in real life. I guess I really don’t want to give this a star rating at all, so 4 seems like a pretty good default. I feel like this kind of book, which tells of many peoples personal accounts of a massacre and the myriad subsequent injustices, isn’t really meant to be rated from “ok” to “awesome.”

If you want to read on this topic, this is a good source, but definitely be in the right mindset for it. (This almost had me tearing up in my philosophy prof’s office!)

[Samo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dočítané symbolicky na 50. výročie okupácie.
Pochmúrna kniha o tom, že to tu mohlo v 1989 dopadnúť úplne inak a demonštranti mohli dodnes sedieť na doživotie za "výtržníctvo" alebo "kontrarevolučnú propagáciu".

[Daniel Vinklar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great book by Liao Yiwu. Everyone should read it to understand the true, tragic reality of China and its totalitarian and citizen-unfriendly system and the dangers and horrors of the hateful communist regime.

[Andre · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two things I can tell you right away:
1) This is a very good book
2) Unless you are off age this is not a book for you, I decided that after having read only 15 % of the book, and the rest confirmed this decision

Now don't get me wrong, this book is not difficult to read or anything, you can read it quickly and easily, the structure makes it easy and there is no problem with the language (of course as far as I know, currently it is only available in German, sadly). But the question is whether you would be able to.
You see while the title suggests that this book deals entirely with the happenings on the Tiananmen square on the 4th June 1989, it actually deals with people before, during and after it in the wider city of Beijing and the massacres happening there. And the author did not shy away from what happened then and afterwards, neither in the interviews nor in the supplement material, like the list of 202 confirmed victims of the shooting, who in age range from 9 years to over 60, with the majority being in their 20s and 30s, and the accounts on how they died showed that chaos had erupted in the city in those days (direct targeting, squashed by tanks, stray bullets etc. Just like the reasons as to why people were arrested and imprisoned for years were crazy, e.g. 15 year old country boys imprisoned for throwing stones, which usually includes abuse and interrogation, others for handing out food, threatening doctors for trying to treat the "rowdies," as well as at least one mentally disabled men who had hit a tank with a belt. He wrote what the people he interviewed told him and it includes a lot of serious topics, like rape, torture, mass shooting, dead people all around them, prisons, disease and oppression. Albeit the people during the demonstrations in Eastern Germany of the same year only knew of the massacre on Tiananmen square, I can understand why they feared the "Chinese solution" since what the book tells you about that incident alone is chilling.
Plus for people who like to romanticize China and its history this would be a shock. Many ordinary citizens of Beijing were infected by the patriotism awoken by the student's and their demonstrations and so went to stop the armed forces, which for a time worked, but not for long. And not just them, we get reports of generals knowing what was going on and of soldiers who clearly had red eyes as if they had been crying. Sadly, that amount of resistance all amounted to nothing and you get told why. So trust me, this is not an easy book for everyone.

I think should anyone ever have the guts to make a TV series (a movie would not be able to cover it, it has to many stories, it does even tell us something about why the authorities acted the way they did, like how the ruling body feared a reliving of the past, how soldiers panicked while others refused to shoot and ran away, as you might expect, the latter where subject to brutality in the hands of the armed forces afterwards) out of it, that person would have made a name for him/herself for lifetime. Remember, talking about this is pretty much taboo in mainland China and due to the Chinese government's actions (suppressing information and research on the incident [e.g. as far as I know the author's works are forbidden in mainland China, only available in Taiwan and Hong Kong]) the death toll estimations range from several hundred to several thousand.

This is a very informative, memorable and captivating book, but it is not something everyone would be able to read.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book demands time to be read. It sits with you and doesn't let you move on without tying these accounts to current events, such as protests in Hong Kong in 2019. I was too young to have known about the Tiananmen Square Massacre, and I don't recall much from my education about it other than the iconic photo of Tank Man. Even so, wrapped up in my own world of protected speech and lifelong security and safety in my own privilege, I never thought to ask why that photo was iconic. I regret I hadn't known more earlier in my adulthood, as this book has drastically shaped my understanding of China's Communist Party, how it has governed in recent history, and the rights and beliefs of it's citizens.

As a US-based reader, I consider this is a must-read for every adult - this is informative for those who live in countries with protected free speech. It's appalling to read the devasting and generational impact of torture, police/military brutality, corruption, and government-sanctioned erasure of events on Liao Yiwu and the individuals, named and unnamed, in this book. Be prepared to Google or research different locations and events mentioned by survivors to better understand the context.

It feels inappropriate to say I am looking for ways to use information from these accounts, as if I solely a consumer and reading this book was a transaction focused on me. I don't want to see myself solely as an audience of the intimate information in this book; I find myself asking how I might honor the people who risked so much to share it. While I still grapple with how to do so, I will say that the last section of the book devastated me. Do not skip it.

[Joaquin Astilla · Rating 4 out of 5]

As an outsider, it didn't make sense to me that stories of the Tiananmen Square massacre victims could still be untold today. But then I look into the events in my own country, where victims of the Martial Law under the Marcos dictatorship and the extrajudicial killings during the Duterte administration haven't claimed justice yet because the government refuses to acknowledge that human rights abuses were done. Oh, and we're talking about the current government whose top positions are occupied by a Marcos and yes, even a Duterte. Do people easily forget or do they simply not understand?

After reading this book, I gained a more horrifying understanding of the extreme censorship in China. I've read all about it in We Have Been Harmonized: Life in China's Surveillance State by Kai Strittmatter, but it never occurred to me that it could seep as far back as the Tiananmen Square massacre, whose victims could not speak their truths freely because they have to worry about surviving and reintegrating into society.

The last few pages were the most painful read. Victims, together with their professions when they died, were listed down. A lot of them were members of the youth who were hit by stray bullets or tortured pointlessly by the military. You then realize that what happened was no longer suppression of dissent, but a public display of violence—a culture of impunity that is perpetuated by the government.

What power then does remembering hold when the system forgets and refuses to understand?

[Joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very timely nonfictional book to read, especially on the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre. Media attention then was on the students and prominent protesters who happened to be immortalized in western media photos such as 'The Tankman." But what of the blue collar workers, the everyday populace who turned up to support the students - the factory worker, car mechanic, vegetable seller. After the hue and cry died down, these people were identified, arrested, tortured, imprisoned, killed. Those that were fortunate enough not to be killed were incarcerated for many years, performing unpaid gruelling work. The author has unprecedented access to interviewing them.
This is their unflinching brutal story.

[Tomáš Bureš · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 hvězdiček je málo. Rozhovory s lidmi zatčenými po 4. červnu 89. Ještě teď mi z toho běhá mráz po zádech. Rozhodně to všem doporučuji. Je dobře, že se kniha stihla vydat zrovna týden před 25 letým výročím masakru.

[Bookygirls Magda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jestem zawiedziona, ponieważ to raczej reportaż z gatunku "okej, wszyscy wiemy o co chodzi, nie ma sensu robić głębszego wprowadzenia" i wszystkie (chociaż dalekie od wyczerpujących) informacje trzeba wyłuskiwać z rozmów. Autor jest jednym z bohaterow swojej historii, komentuje i opowiada o swoim doswiadczeniu przy kazdej rozmowie. Najbardziej denerwowaly mnie częste pytania o kontakty seksualne i czy po pobycie w więzieniu rozmówcy cierpią z powodu impotencji - przy tym co przeżyli jest to najmniejszy problem, wiekszosc czuje sie niekomfortowo i nie chce o tym rozmawiać, więc tym bardziej rzuca się w oczy jak bardzo autora trapi ten temat. Kolejnym minusem jest to, że nie ma tu nawet jednej żeńskiej perspektywy i ja z tej książki nie wiem czy kobiety np. były częścią protestujących, czy także trafialy do więzień, a jesli tak, to jakie byly ich doswiadczenia. Po przeczytaniu całości nie odróżniam od siebie rozmówców, ich doświadczenia były w 80% takie same, różniły się tylko uzasadnienia wyroku. Jako czytelniczka czułam się znużona ciągłymi powtórzeniami, czuję niedosyt i wiem, że będę musiała obejrzeć dokument na ten temat, bo (w moim mniemaniu) niewiele się dowiedziałam

[Isabo · Rating 5 out of 5]

L’auteur nous livre des témoignages intimes, parfois drôles et toujours émouvants de ceux qui ont fait Tiananmen. Ce document nous permet de mieux appréhender la réalité de 1989 : aux cris de démocratie et justice, le pouvoir répond par les armes et offre à son peuple le nouvel opium ; l’argent. Des récits pour comprendre ce que les gens ordinaires ont vécu et réhabiliter la mémoire. A lire absolument !

[Ola Czuk · Rating 1 out of 5]

1,5

[Emilie He · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don’t think a book has ever provoked such an emotional reaction from me before - must read to commemorate the victims of the 6/4 massacre. The focus on the working class victims was unique and necessary as the student protestors are typically the ones with the most recognition. Truly a remarkable account that I’ll never forget

[Salla K · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ostin tän kesällä hyllyyn odottamaan hetkeä jona ehtisin lukemaan tän ja tästä tulikin yhtäkkiä kovin ajankohtainen....

[kavreb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bullets and Opium is as interesting to read as it is difficult to get through - the disgust at the proceedings feeding the righteous anger boiling within, looking to flow out, and yet nowhere to go as the injustice still stands.

It is difficult to look at contemporary China’s hegemony with quite the same eyes - or even their cultural products. For example I loved the film The Curse of the Golden Flower when I saw it, but is it quite as lovely still knowing it was the imprisoned innocent forced to work like slaves in awful conditions making the fancy costumes for the movie?

Some reviewers have complained that the names and stories get repetitive, but it's hardly surprising that people find it difficult remembering names that they’re not used to, and as for the repetition, it's that repetition itself which builds into a larger story of injustice and greed and the lie of totalitarian governments who say that they work for the people but really they don't give a rat’s ass about the people.

Because the thing is, the book is not just the story of the Tiananmen square massacre or China's response to it, but it is, as the author remarks himself, the vision of how China functions now - harsh repression of any difference of opinion, and the enslavement and exploitation of its poor and minorities. Can you say which big contemporary Chinese movie wasn’t made with slave labour? It's a tough question, and personally disconcerting as I like Chinese cinema, but how can I watch anything state-approved now without that tinge of knowledge that they might have made innocent people slave for this?

And it's not just China, this is all of the countries that turn the guns of their armies towards their own people when the people ask for something different and/or better. Reading the book, I could imagine the same things having happened in Russia and Belarus and Syria and so on - people coming out, and the government, incapable and unwilling to do anything actually for the people and not just for the powers in control of it, answering with harsh violence and idiotic vindictiveness, because all they care about is holding on to the power that lets them enjoy their lives beyond any mortal reserves.

I am lucky to live in a country where social movements are not answered with guns and torture. I am even luckier that when the Soviet Union fell, and my country got free, Soviet Union did indeed fall, and Gorbachev wasn't the kind of a man who only cared about personal gain and would go on such massacres (and, I guess, lucky also that other powers saw democracy as a chance to come into power which they then turned into oligarchy that evolved into the totalitarianism we have in Russia today so I guess lucky also to not have been born in a country with stronger lingering ties to Russia).

The most difficult part of the book is to see the sheer injustice and mindless violence that follows the crowd’s peaceful protest, but it’s comparably difficult to see how the fourth June survivors (who managed to survive both the massacre and the ensuing torture and imprisonment) were treated after their release by regular people who almost all seem to despise them. There’s a saying summing it up that gets tossed around several times, especially by the “thugs” - people despise poverty, not immorality.

There might be some complaints about objectivity - it is “just” people’s stories, based on their own and the author’s memories. There doesn't seem to be any fact-checking and if anybody remembered anything incorrectly, there's something incorrect here.

But even with that grain of salt, you can see the innocence of these people, the way it was often young people who didn't really know what they were doing, who just felt they wanted something better, or were filled with anger at what was happening (and wouldn't you be, seeing for example a mother drag along an 8 year old, shot dead by a soldier?), and then for the tiniest thing they did, were punished massively, often the charges just made up; and once released, the torture continued as society received them with despise, and secret police still hounded them, and they found their own bodies falling apart from the treatment in the hands of the police and the prisons, unable to find work or support themselves, their remaining life on this earth looking like an endless parade of misery.

The situation is further complicated as there are three sides criticised by these so-called "thugs", aka the working class people who participated in the protests and riots (because of course class matters, even in communism, because it's all a lie) - most obviously, the government and army, for the betrayal of what they were supposed to stand for; then the society that failed to welcome them back from prison, and had seemingly changed their allegiance from humanity to money; and then the students themselves, who according to many thugs had often little seeming care for their working class supporters and who escaped more easily and then wrote only about themselves.

And it’s not difficult to see the injustice when an interview with one of the student leaders shows all the ways he ��broke” the law, and then was sentenced only for a year, while all the previous "thugs" had gone away for so much more (some over 15 years), if not outright executed.

But many of the “thugs” still swear by the students, seeing their role as the shining beacon that allowed the people to see that something was wrong; and as you dive into the second part of the book, it starts working almost like a repudiation of the argument, as you can see both the privileges the students had, and yet how that still wasn’t enough to save them.

Many of them suffered similar tortures, even if for shorter periods, and for many a return to civilian life was as humiliating and depressing as for the “thugs”, even if their education gave them a leg-up (but often in ways that act as a weight on their back). Many also couldn’t let go, just like the “thugs”, still speaking out in whatever form they could, often drawing more attention and troubles on their head, the author of the book himself an example before he managed to escape. Many of their lives are as miserable and broken as those of the “thugs”, even if some of them have more money and fame for their name.

But then the final chapter, about the effort to get Liu Xaobo and his wife Liu Xia to Germany before his death, shows exactly how difficult it is to save even one person, however privileged and respected they may be, so even though people got the prime minister of Germany, Angela Merkel, to personally take on the case and to talk for him to the paramount leader of china, Xi Jinping, and yet it's all for nought.

If there's no hope for a Nobel prize laureate, what hope is there for others?

And that's exactly what the Chinese communist government wants its people to feel - that the only salvation lies with them, and to err from the convoluted straight and narrow put down by them, is to not just be punished, but to be essentially a bad person (how many of the victims criticised themselves for “bringing this on their family”, like they were in the wrong …)

But that's exactly what makes this book powerful and important - to tell the stories of the people, and not the lie that those in power want us to believe so that they could continue staying in power.

Because whatever its flaws (and there are flaws - for one, the most glaring, the lack of interviews with women, and a somewhat missing larger political picture), but if those in power got their way, there would never be a book like this released anywhere.

We cannot let that stand.

And however difficult the truth is, we must bear witness.

[Seom Six · Rating 5 out of 5]

Neobyčejné svědectví o událostech na Náměstí nebeského klidu roku 1989, od kterých letos uplyne 30 let. Přeživší a pozůstalí stále marně čekají na rehabilitaci ze strany komunistického režimu, který poštval armádu proti vlastním lidem, nezřídka dětem, a určil tím podobu dnešní Číny kloubící zvrhlost komunismu s bezohlednou formou kapitalismu. Kdo chce rozumět dnešní Číně a na čem je vybudován její dnešní ekonomický úspěch, ať čte knihy Liao I-Wu. Je to příběh prolité krve, brutálního násilí, pohrdání životem a drastického potlačování svobody a samostatného myšlení. Svědků událostí 4. června ubývá, informace o nich čínská vláda stále blokuje a kniha Kulky a opium je tak vzácným mementem, knihou, ve které obžaloba nelidského systému zůstává zachována a osudy trýzněných a mrtvých uchovány pro dobu, kdy -snad- dojde k jejich přehodnocení.

[B. Cheng · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book to read on the 30th anniversary of the events of Tiananmen Square in 1989. This gives a unique take that we tend not to see, with most stories focused on the students, Liao presents us with the stories of the ordinary Chinese, many Beijingers, who joined in the protests, their eventual punishments, and how they were able to deal with life after jail. Unlike the students, many who were able to get out, these are the people who really suffered in the aftermath of the government's crackdown.

[Dymbula · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dost husté čtení. Cokoliv, co je spojené komoušema, je cesta do rudých pekel. Kromě toho kniha dokazuje, že mluvit o jiné mentalitě je blbost. Komunisti jsou všude stejní a obyčejní lidé jsou si taky podobní tam i tady.

[Holistr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Liao Yi Wu na prvních 50 stránách popisuje svůj vlastní příběh a roky strávené ve vězení. Nepopisuje unylý život ve věznici, jen vystihuje ty nejchmurnější detaily, kterými jsou zatýkání, bytí, mučení, nedostatek místa, nucená práce a samozřejmě sexuální život. V této kapitole, taky uvádí čtenáře do děje, a na pozadí vlastního příběhu nás vpravuje do životů demonstrantů, studentů i obyčejných lidí, kteří se odhodlali s ním mluvit a sdílet osudy po r. 89. Jak se na zapřenou setkával s „výtržníky”, kteří stejně jako on na jaře 89 věřili v demokratizaci Číny. Seznamujeme se s osudy Wu Wen Tiana, Jiang Jie Liana, červíčka a dokonce samotného Wang Wei Lina. Studenta jenž se postavil koloně tanků na náměstí Nebeského klidu a tedy aktéra nejznámějšího záběru z doby nepokojů v Pekingu.

"Ale tu noc bylo v čínských ulicích nespočet Wu Wen Linů, které žádný objektiv nezvěčnil.”

Autor přesouvá styl z osobního vyprávění na rozhovor s jedním z účastníků protestů, se kterými se schází v různých koutech Číny, restauracích a čajovnách. Tam se na zapřenou setkává s „výtržníky”, kteří stejně jako on na jaře 89 věřili v demokratizaci Číny. Pořádková hlídka - nestudentský ochránce studentů - 2 krát zatčen, bývalý vojenský kuchař, velký obchodník a

2. Uměleci s vejci, Maův potrét se nehanobí - Yu Zi Jian doživotí, Yu Dong Jue 20 let, Lu De Cheng 16 let
3. na 16 let za páčidlo a chcanky - Wang Lian Hui
4. 3krát zavřený spisovatel - Liu Shui
5. Li Hai - „želva” se sociální fobií 9 let

Autor se soutředí na příbehy a mě hodně mrzí že kniha není koncipována chronologicky, ať už podle událostí v 1989 nebo podle doby kdy se autor scházel s disidenty/vězni na rozhovor. Takhle je, speciálně pro Evropana, ve jménech a časech absolutní zmatek. Možná je to záměr autora. Z chaousu dat a jmen pak vystupují oživlé osobnosti, barvité popisy událostí z vězení, nebo ze života bývalých vězňů, po té, co se vrátili do „norálního života.” Ve všech vyprávěních se zrcadlí rozčarování z života na svobodě, ochromení z přístupu blízkých, vystřízlivění z touhy po svobodě a demokracii a především znechucení společností, která je falešná, zaměřená na peníze, zisk a lež. Jako by to, za co v 89 bojovali neexistovalo. Zůstala jen honba za ziskem, touha po moci a majetku. I 20, 30 let po událostech 4. června byli výtržníci sledováni tajnou policí, dozorováni. Společnost je vyloučila na samý okraj nejen jako zločince, ale jako ty, se kterými není dobré se stýkat. Nikdo nechce mít problémy, pěkně držet hubu a krok. K tomu sexuální potíže, impotence. Moho „výtržníků” jež nastoupili trest v délce trvání i 17 let bylo velmi mladých bez jakýchkoliv zkušeností. To se pak projevilo nejen v kriminále, ale hlavně po návratu z něj. Impotence a předčasná ejakulace buď jedno nebo druhé, nebo obojí postihlo všechny z nich. Co jiného si taky budou ti muklové pamatovat. Jak se tam dostali, co jedli, na čem nuceně pracovali a jaký šok bylo dostat se ven do kruté čínské a společenské reality 21. století.

Jsou to výpovědi odsouzenců s šokujícími scénami z věznice i mimo ni. Nelidské zacházení s vězni a extrémní metody vyslýchání se táhnou celým textem. Kniha je rozdělena na 3 části: osobní zpověď autora, rozhovory s „výtržníky” a seznam 202 potvrzených úmrtí z 4. června 1989. Přiložen je i překlad básně autora Liao YI Wu s názvem „Krveprolití”, kterou autor osobně recitoval na náměstí Nebeského klidu.

„Masakr 4.června je dělící čarou mezi světy. Před ní všichni milovali vlast, za ní všichni milovali peníze.”

Ano, hodně z těch, nazývaných „výtržníci", se dostalo zpět domů až po dlouhých letech za mřížemi. Případně byli odsouzeni opakovaně, pro jistotu, aby nedělali venku problémy a nešířili „nepravdu” o tom co se skutečně stalo 4. června. Dnes už je tomu 30 let a stále jsou kontrolováni a hlídáni.
Rehabilitace? Na tu zapomněli ještě ve vězení. Kdo mohl emigroval a kdo nemohl zapomněl. A věnuje se přítomnosti? Ne tak docela, příběhy některých „výtržníků” přímo čiší pocitem viny, že toho během 3. června nedokázali víc. Ti pak podléhají nutkání osvobodit pravdu prostřednictvím básní, knih a uměleckých děl.

Poselství celé knihy vnímám jako upozornění na organizaci "Hnutí matek Tian An Menu” a snahu vyrovnat se s revolučním rokem prostřednictví média, které je autorovi důvěrně známé. Nedokáže již psát básně, tak píše o tom co ho tíží. Kniha vyšla až v roce 2011, když se Liao dostal do exilu do Německa, ale materiál na ní byl sbírán v průběhu desetiletí, originály byli zabavovány policií a autor začínal na novo několikrát.

Citace:
„Navíc, v obchodě když nepodvádíš, nemáš šanci vydělat. Lituješ toho devětaosmdesátýho? Je mi z toho ouzko. Kdo ví, jestli se dočkám nějaké rehabilitace 4. června. Ale než umřu, rozhodně sví dceři řeknu, že její táta nikdy nelitoval té zlé krve, že se komunistům postavil. Nikdy se nevzdal! Je možná chudej jak kostelní myš, ale ve všem důležitým je na něj spoleh, je to slušnej člověk.

"Tu noc na tom byli lidi jak počasí. Dusno, spousta hromů, ale déšť nikde."

Překlad velmi zdařilý, jen mě irituje přepis čínštiny do českého přepisu. Ty jména se prostě čpatně luští.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Warning: Content violence, mentions of trauma, death, and crude language.

Most Beijing people have called the Tiananmen Protest/Massacre, June 4th, as a horrible and crude event. Throughout this narration from survivors of students, teachers, professors, a war veteran, and bystanders, you will find their perspectives and experiences on how the protest came to be and how they dealt with the consequences.  The ones who have told their story recounts how quickly the protest spread out to all of Beijing and how it came to Tiananmen Square.  Some were as young as in their late teens to early 20's when they participated in the protest.  All of the survivors who have lived through the massacre in these stories have gone to jail and suffered many beatings, worked hard labor that was forced on them and are to keep their mouths shut for the fight to change society. But even years later, many of the Beijing people have told the survivors to forget about June 4th and go on with their lives.   


I read this through an audio book and it is very different compared to just reading the text in front of you.  The translation taken from the survivors had no emotions when recounting the event of what happened, but they are still driven in changing China to a more democratic way of life even after what happened to them.  I'm not usually into politics but this one hits hard when you hear each survivor's story and how much they were willing to fight and die for what is right for their country.  In a sense, I would think it's ideal to fight for one's country, but society has a different way of thinking on how to control their population, especially China.  Each survivor had their own philosophy on how they lived and what they experience but it all came down to one thing;  that they wanted to live freely in China.
I'd recommend anyone who is interested in learning more about in Asian history, especially with this event in general, but just to be warned that it can be gruesome in some details.

[Ubah Khasimuddin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A necessary accounting of what happened to those who participated in the 1989 Democratic protests in China - but a very depressing book. The author, who also participated and was punished for engaging in the protests, manages to escape China and he compiled all these stories while he was still in the country.
I didn't know much about the protests and this has sparked my curiosity to learn more - one thing that is pervasive throughout the book is that the Chinese government did a fantastic job of stamping out the protest and killing it in the afterlife. All of the people who the author interviews were sent away for long stretches to prison and when they came out, they were treated like pariahs. No one hailed them as revolutionary fighters or innocent bystanders but as hard core criminals. Their lives were shattered irreparably. In some cases they made bad choices but in other cases it seems the world is against them. I didn't realize how much of a dictator state China was until I read this account and how these people are made to suffer over and over again. They are not allowed to be rehabilitated or even leave the country.
My only quibble with the book is that the tales are very similar so it gets a bit tedious (I know everyone's suffering is individualized) but for the reader, its rinse and repeat in many of these accounts. A good editor could have probably helped.
I recommend reading if you are interested in learning more about China, plan on working or studying there or are a political science/international relations student. I think this would be a good book for a book club as well, just to see what others thought of the situation. Certainly the book and the accounts lend themselves to great discussions. Its a short book so easy to finish.

[Aleksander Nowinski · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jak zwykle w przypadku Liao Yiwu książka jest przede wszystkim dokumentem o współczesnych Chinach. Tym razem jest to zapis wywiadów z osobami, które chińskie władze na lata zamknęły do więzień po brutalnym stłumieniu zamieszek na placu Tiananmen.
Chiny po 4 czerwca 1989 poszły zupełnie inną drogą niż nasza - władza postanowiła że nastanie kapitalizm, ale zachowana zostanie tyrania. Wszystkich tych, którzy liczyli na przemiany demokratyczne zamknięto na lata do więzień, a kiedy je opuścili trafili do innego świata, którego nie rozumieją.
Książka nieco nużąca - trudno się zresztą dziwić - ponieważ przeżycia kolejnych osób w zasadzie są bardzo podobne, różnią się długości wyroków i przyczyny osadzenia.
Na koniec dwie długie, strannie opracowane listy udokumentowanych przypadków śmierci i trwałych okaleczeń w czasie tłumienia zamieszek. Zawiera tylko niewielki odsetek, ale udokumentowany ponad wszelką wątpliwość ofiar wymordowanych przez żołnierzy armii chińskiej. Po przeczytaniu tego rozdziału chyba już nigdy nie będę w stanie szanować żadnego chińskiego żołnierza.

[Vakaris the Nosferatu · Rating 5 out of 5]

all reviews in one place:
night mode reading ;
skaitom nakties rezimu

My Opinion: Those of us who live in the countries that were under the Soviet regime will find these stories painfully familiar. We grew up with them, from our parents, from our grandparents, in our history books, in our low budget beautiful old movies. Dehumanizing acts against people who merely spoke up. Brutal behavior, nightmarish conditions, grueling work that killed many, maimed for life even more. And the tale isn’t over, with most of the world not being aware of it.

It’s a very tough book, but for the sake of the names in it, it’s a very worthy read. A 5 out of 5, for nothing else is in my power, but a review and hopefully – a few more readers.

[Meera · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the West our understanding of the Tiananmen Square massacre is largely based on the experiences of protestors who were able to leave China in the aftermath, giving us the impression it was a mostly student based movement.
Bullets and Opium dispels this myth by interviewing various working class people, who made up the majority of the protestors, about their experiences during and after the protests. Through these orals histories we learn of their bravery and determination, and how the government responded with brutal violence. After the massacre many of them were given long prison sentences, only to be ostracized by their peers upon release.
Liao Yiwu's compassion shines through these interviews, revealing how devastating the consequences were for working class protesters. This was a difficult and heartbreaking book to read, but I am glad I did so nonetheless.

[Ashwin Shanker · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is a harrowing and unforgettable collection of oral histories by Liao Yiwu, a Chinese poet and dissident. For over seven years, Liao Yiwu secretly interviewed survivors of the devastating 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre, collecting their stories of trauma, loss, and resilience.

The book is a summary of the Chinese government's brutal crackdown on the pro-democracy movement, and it gives voice to the victims who have been silenced for so long. The stories are told in a raw and unfiltered style, and they are all the more moving for their honesty and sincerity.

Bullets and Opium is an essential read for anyone who wants to understand the true impact of the Tiananmen Square massacre. It is a book that will stay with you long after reading it.

[Rachel Brower · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is just as the title/subtitle states: a bunch of compiled stories from people who participated in the Tiananmen Square protests. It seemed many of them had similar stories. It's kind of wild that of all the types of punishment that the PRC could give to these men, they chose crotch kicking and prodding the most. It's pretty sick, actually. Anyway, after you listen to a few of these stories, they all pretty much sound the same and it's hard to tell the difference between them because, well, there isn't much of a difference. I think this book could have been shortened quite a bit, since there are so many repetitions within its pages. I wish this book discussed more about what led up to the massacre.