HONG KONG (UCAN) -- Participants at a June 4 prayer rally took home tiny metal bells on strings attached to mobile phones as reminders to muster the courage needed to sound the bell of justice in society.

The strings of bells, each with a tag saying "18th Anniversary of June 4," will tinkle whenever the people use their phone. This will remind them to stay awake to sound the bells of justice, according to the organizer, the Union of Hong Kong Catholic Organizations in Support of the Patriotic Democratic Movement in China.

Or Yan-yan, project officer of Hong Kong diocese's Justice And Peace Commission, told UCA News that the bells carry the meaning of the Chinese saying "Whoever starts trouble should end it," in addition to sounding an alert. "The Chinese leaders should admit their mistakes," she said.

The commission is a member of the union, which was formed in 1989. On June 4 that year, the Chinese government cracked down on tens of thousands of students and civilians in Beijing calling for democracy and clean government. Reports said about 1,000 died and thousands more were injured. Local people in Hong Kong refer to the crackdown as the June 4 Incident and have commemorated it annually since.

This year about 500 Christians, including priests, nuns and students, joined the prayer gathering at a pavilion in Victoria Park an hour before the territory-wide candlelight mass rally. According to organizers, that rally drew about 55,000 people, 15,000 more than in 2006, while police estimated the crowd at 27,000.

Cardinal Joseph Zen Ze-kiun of Hong Kong, who spoke at the prayer gathering, just returned from a three-week trip to the United States and Canada. He met many mainland Chinese emigrants, he said, who were enjoying freedom and the rule of law. The 75-year-old prelate hoped mainlanders would someday enjoy similar freedom and rights without having to emigrate.

The cardinal said those shot dead at Tiananmen Square in Beijing were filled with lofty patriotism but met with violent repression. He prayed that state leaders would have the courage to cleanse the stains left 18 years ago.

Korean Father Andrew Kim Yong-jae, assistant parish priest at Holy Redeemer Church, told UCA News at the gathering that he was aware of the June 4 Incident, comparing it to the Kwangju incident in South Korea. Both events were similar, he said, and he "felt deeply" about them.

The Kwangju incident took place on May 18, 1980, when General Chun Doo-hwan ordered military suppression of democracy demonstrations, causing numerous deaths and injuries among civilians, many of them students.

The world was aware of the June 4 Incident, but some in China might not have even heard about the event, he noted.

The Hong Kong rallies not only call on people to fight for democracy, Father Kim added, but also urge the central government to admit its mistakes. "As we model ourselves after Jesus, we have to voice injustices," he said.

Father Simon Li Chi-yuen, parish priest at St. John the Baptist Church, told UCA News he has joined the prayer and candlelight rallies for years because he believes the students of the 1989 pro-democracy movement in Beijing did nothing wrong and hopes they will be vindicated.

On May 16, Hong Kong legislator Ma Lik told the media that the June 4 Incident was not a massacre in terms of scale. Ma, chairman of Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong, a pro-Beijing political party, raised doubts as to how tanks could run over students.

Many people in the territory said his remarks showed disrespect to the victims and their families. Some also claimed, however, that his words might encourage more people to attend the commemorative rallies.

Father Li acknowledged those sentiments, but said the people who joined the rallies came not because of Ma's words but to be part of a heartfelt commemoration of the dead and the event.

Another priest, who preferred anonymity, told UCA News, "We should be grateful to Ma, since some people don't know about or have forgotten the event. His comments have reminded them."

At the prayer gathering, the Catholic organizers presented a slideshow on China's recent rapid development, highlighting how Beijing has stressed economic development while avoiding democratic development.

END

(Accompanying photos available at here)