[1] It began as the Democracy Wall movement in Beijing, which occurred in 1978 and 1979, right after the end of the Chinese Cultural Revolution.
[4] The phrase "Beijing Spring" was also used during a more recent period of political thaw in the PRC from September 1997 to mid November 1998.
The relatively trouble-free handover of Hong Kong to China from the United Kingdom and the death of Deng Xiaoping in early 1997 were precursors to this brief period of liberalisation.
The Democracy Wall Movement dissident Wei Jingsheng was released and exiled, China signed the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and China was visited by US President Bill Clinton and UN Human Rights Commissioner Mary Robinson at this time.
By the end of 1998 the government had again cracked down on leading dissidents and those involved in the fledgling opposition Chinese Democracy Party.