What ultimately happened to Tank Man in the 1989 Tiananmen Massacre?

Answer 1

He escaped the 6.4 incident rather unscathed, and went back to his city the following year. In the ensuing years after, he tried to dip his toes wet like millions of other fellow Chinese in the open sea of state capitalism, however, being a young idealist such as he, the reality proved harsh. He was never able to ‘break the bank’ so to speak, and went back to teaching. In early 2000, he married a fellow colleague at the school he was teaching, and soon had a kid, a boy to the joy of his elderly parents. The couple remained at the school to this very day, teaching thousands of young and bright Chinese students to follow their dreams and achieve greatness.

So, does this story please you? Or was it too….ordinary? Would a story of drama, intrigue and romance more befitting to the Tank Man?

The Tank Man is a symbol, that’s what it is, and that’s what it should be.

By happenstance, that short few seconds of him facing down the tanks became THE image of 6.4 incidence. No context needed, no story required, no follow up interview to schedule.

The Tank Man doesn’t, and shouldn’t need a face, least of all, a story to bring him to the mundane.

Answer 2

After traveling in China and finally figuring out where this spot was in Beijing, I did some research on this iconic image. The man was never identified, and got away in the confusion of the time. There is zero evidence he was ever caught and his identify is unknown to this day.

The photo was not taken in Tiananmen Square. If you cross the very busy street at the North End of the Square to enter the gigantic Forbidden city, but instead go a few blocks to the East to a major intersection, that’s where this iconic incident took place.

Answer 3

According to Jan Wong[1] , in one of her books, an American politician asked a high level Chinese official the same question. And the answer was: “Not dead, I think.”

I don’t remember which book. It’s either Jan Wong’s China: Reports From A Not-So-Foreign Correspondent, or Red China Blues: My Long March from Mao to Now.

The Tank Man is no longer a man but a symbol. If the man behind the symbol is still alive, we should leave him alone.

Edit: words

Footnotes

[1] Jan Wong – Wikipedia

Answer 4

AFAIK almost all the sources confirm he didn’t die (the tanks stopped and didn’t you know.. run him over as the picture seem to suggest. ) , and it seems the CCP knows who he is but isn’t telling.

It seems he simply went back to his life and is probably still around doing reasonably well, but keeping a low profile .

Answer 5

No one cares，except those ‘merciful westerners’.