Principal role of the military

To me, the principal role of the military is to defend the nation. Using the military to kill its own people is unforgivable. This isn't any different from the 1989 massacre in China. I wonder if there is an attempt by the various media in whitewashing the entire incident...

And now, I find that some people were cheering the army for killing the demonstrators. Right-wing types?

Some had also justified this by some measure of moral equivalence. I don't know. Some had claimed that both sides were equally in the wrong. Whitewash? What do you think?