From Assent to Dissent

When the Chinese government cracked down on the anti-establishment Democracy Movement in 1989, resulting in the massacre of innocent civilians in Tiananmen Square, their prime target was the spiritual father of dissidents, astrophysicist Dr Fang Lizhi. Barely moments ahead of the political police, Fang and his wife slipped into the confines of the American Embassy in Beijing, narrowly escaping what would surely have been execution by firing squad. For a year they remained hidden in the innermost reaches of the Embassy, until their safe passage out of China was finally negotiated and they were able to head for Britain and a new life in the West. This is Fang's personal story.