Beijing, June 04: Even as Chinese police maintained tight vigil against any protests to mark the 14th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square military crackdown, the government has again spurned a passionate appeal by families of people killed for a reassessment of tragedy, saying stability remains the country`s top-most priority. Signalling the new Chinese government`s unwillingness to reopen a highly sensitive issue, foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said that the government and the Communist Party leadership had reached a correct conclusion on the political turmoil of 1989 long back.

"This conclusion will remain unchanged," Zhang said when asked to comment on a letter sent by over 100 families of the victims of the Chinese government crackdown here 14 years ago.

"Stability has always remained the top priority for China," she said, indicating that if the Chinese government had not taken decisive steps to crush the uprising, the country would not have seen such rapid economic growth and political stability.

Western human rights groups and family members of victims have been appealing unsuccessfully for a "reversal of verdicts" made by the ruling Communist Party and government on the Tiananmen Square incident every year since the incident occurred 14 years back.

In a recent letter to China`s top prosecutor, the supreme people`s procuratorate, 117 family members renewed demands that former premier Li Peng, who recently retired as chairman of the National People`s Congress, China`s top legislature be held legally responsible for the incident.

Bureau Report