Hong Kong marks Tiananmen anniversary

Tens of thousands of people have filled a Hong Kong park for a candlelight vigil marking the 20th anniversary of the crackdown on protests in Tiananmen Square.

In the only commemoration of the military crackdown on Chinese soil, an estimated 150,000 people turned out to remember those killed..

The vigil has become a touchstone both for the movement for democracy in China and for the campaign to overturn Beijing's official verdict condemning the 1989 demonstrations.

Organisers said before the event they were hoping 100,000 people would attend, more than double last year's turnout.

But crowds were still pouring into the park 40 minutes after the first candle was lit.

'This rally will tell the world... that we still remember the Tiananmen Square democracy movement,' Xiong Yan, one of the student leaders of the protests who was surprisingly let into Hong Kong.

Tanks moved into the square early on 4 June 1989 following weeks of student and worker protests.

The Tiananmen crackdown - which left hundreds, possibly thousands dead - remains a taboo subject in China and authorities have moved aggressively to make sure the anniversary is not marked publicly anywhere on the mainland.

But Hong Kong, which has a separate legal system from most of China, remains a centre for dissident activity because of its enshrined right to free speech.

The ruling Communist Party has never released an official death toll and fears any public marking of the crackdown could undermine its hold on power.

In a sign of China's mix of confidence and caution, Tiananmen Square itself was open to visitors today, with hundreds of police and guards present.

On the tenth anniversary of the crackdown in 1999, it was closed to the public.