For 24 years, a disturbing sculpture depicting a twisted mass of bodies has stood on campus at the University of Hong Kong to remind students of the Tiananmen Square massacre perpetrated by Chinese troops in 1989. Now, as China’s grip on the city tightens, the statue’s coming down. On Thursday, the organizers of Hong Kong’s annual Tiananmen Massacre vigil reportedly received a letter from the university demanding the removal of the statue—known as the Pillar of Shame—by next week. If it’s not taken down, the university said it will be “deemed abandoned” and dealt with. The Danish artist who created the sculpture, Jens Galschiøt, said he was “shocked” by the news and threatened to sue, saying: “It’s really not fair to remove it in a week while it’s been there for 24 years... I can take them to court if they destroy it.” The Tiananmen massacre saw Chinese troops bring a brutal end to months of student-led demonstrations by slaying hundreds, or possibly thousands, of people.
