TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Decentralized international hacktivist group Anonymous on Saturday (June 4) hacked into a Chinese government educational website to commemorate the Tiananmen Square Massacre.
Anonymous hacked into the Jiangsu Vocational Education and Adult Education Network, according to Anonymous representative "Allez-opi_omi." The collective uploaded an html page that included the words "Taiwan Numbah Wan" and Taiwan's national flag and emblem, a video on the Tiananmen Square massacre, and images of Tank Man among other elements.
At the time of publication, the defacement along with the website have been taken offline. However, Anonymous has saved an archived version on Ghost Archive.
The first image that appears is the Anonymous logo, followed by the "Taiwan Numbah Wan!" meme. This was a reference to a quote uttered by video game streamer AngryPug in 2015 to antagonize Chinese streamer Em0 during a match in the game H1Z1.
Below the slogan was Taiwan's national flag followed by its national emblem. The collective then said it was taking a "short break from #OpUkraine today to remember the Tiananmen Massacre."
Next, the group embedded the music video for "Fragile," a Mandopop song sung by Malaysian rapper Namewee (黄明志) and Taiwan-based Australian singer Kimberley Chen (陳芳語). This is followed by a video by Simple History that explains the Tiananmen Square Massacre.
The collective then inserted four Tank Man memes, which are based on the original iconic photo taken a day after the massacre when an unidentified Chinese man stood in front of a column of tanks to block them from proceeding on Chang'an Avenue on the north edge of Tiananmen Square. As the tanks were departing the square after shots were heard, the man suddenly walked in front of the lead tank, causing the driver to stop the vehicle. Like all images of the massacre, the photo is strictly banned in China.
Tank Man photo. (Anonymous image)
Other notable elements in the defacement include an image of Dr. John Cheng, a Taiwanese-American doctor and martial artist who was hailed by police as a hero for bravely risking his own life to save others when a gunman began shooting at a Taiwanese church congregation. The collective then reissued the following demands:
- Develop an antiviral drug treatment against COVID-19 based on Todd Rider's DRACO
- Take Shepherd Iverson's idea for reunifying the Korean Peninsula into consideration
- Actively intervene to stop the Russian invasion of Ukraine and incorporate a neutral security belt consisting of Ukraine, Belarus, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Moldova, Finland, and Bosnia, with the possibilities of referenda and UN peacekeeping administration in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine as a starting point
Lego version of Tank Man. (Anonymous image)
Lastly, the activists weighed in on the tragedy in Uvalde by criticizing U.S. Customs and Border Protection for being "nitpicky" and voyeuristic at the border. "However inside the U.S. itself as we have seen now in Uvalde, they are rather reluctant and hesitant to confront threats within," wrote the collective.
The page then displayed photos of 16 of the 21 victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde, Texas.
Tank Man meme. (Anonymous image)
Dr. John Cheng. (Anonymous image)
