Tank Man
5 June 1989
On 5 June 1989, the day after the army cleared Tiananmen Square, a lone man stepped into Chang'an Avenue in Beijing in front of a column of Type 59 tanks. The lead tank tried to steer around him. He stepped across to block it again, and the column stopped. He climbed onto the lead tank, seemed to speak with the crew, and was then pulled away by two men in blue. Several photographers captured the scene from hotel balconies, including Stuart Franklin for Time, Charlie Cole for Newsweek, Jeff Widener for the Associated Press and Arthur Tsang Hin Wah for Reuters.
His identity is unknown. A British newspaper named him Wang Weilin, a 19 year old student, shortly afterwards, but the name was never confirmed, and a 2017 report suggested another name. His fate is unknown too. Some accounts say he was executed, others that he is alive, and another theory says he reached Taiwan. The image is still censored in China.
The Charge
No charge against him has ever been made public. The state's position has been one of denial and denunciation. Chinese state television once called him a scoundrel, and the segment was never aired again. In a 1990 interview Jiang Zemin said he did not think the man was ever killed, and in 2000 he said the man was never arrested. The authorities have also argued that the incident showed the army's restraint. One account says Wang Weilin was charged with political hooliganism, but that account relies on the unconfirmed name.
The Case For
He was unarmed, alone and stood in front of a column of tanks. Time put him on its 1998 list of the 100 most important people of the century as The Unknown Rebel, and Charlie Cole's photograph won the 1990 World Press Photo of the Year. For many people around the world, the picture is the single clearest image of civilian courage against state force.
The Case Against
Within China the authorities have never accepted that framing. The events of that spring remain restricted topics, and the photograph is censored. Because the man is unidentified, nobody can say what he intended, what he believed or what became of him, and the story of who he was has been written by others.
Where Do You Stand?
Can someone be a hero, or a criminal, when we do not know his name, his motives or his fate? Does an act need an identity to be judged? Public opinion inside China cannot be measured, because the subject is censored. Outside it, the picture has become a symbol. Where do you stand?