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Today there was a mini protest outside of the foreign dorms, and a New China News Agency video team was roaming the hallways, looking for people to interview for the biased TV news. I went back to Sanjiaodi to see what was going down. There were even more banners and posters, and lots of people discussing and ranting in small groups.

People were talking crazy. Some guy was ranting that China could attack the American west coast, while an economics professor from People's University was talking about how America keeps China from developing out of fear it will overtake the U.S. because its people are so smart. Another big talker was a unique type I've seen a lot of in China: the military nerd. Military matters are important here. Bookstores always have a big military affairs section, there are several popular military magazines, and even a military affairs club at Peking University. These people are dorky, not the muscle-head that you'd expect in a big military fan.

At Sanjiaodi, Mr. Military kept telling me that the U.S. bombed the embassy on purpose, and he knew this because the bombs came from three different angles -- proof that it must've been planned. But the protest also drew Beijing's young and cool. Nick, my Australian friend, was talking to a long-haired Chinese guy who turned out to be Cui Jian, one of China's top rock 'n' roll artists.

After a while, I felt safe enough -- and frustrated enough -- to participate in the discussions. It's hard when somebody keeps telling you what "Americans think," when nobody you know thinks like that. Everybody kept on saying "Americans think." I told them what they really should be saying is "the U.S thinks or the American government thinks."

The official Chinese view on the embassy bombing is pretty straightforward. The U.S. did it on purpose, and it's a violation of Chinese sovereignty. The newspapers assume this, and the students do a good job of following the party line. The U.S. and NATO apology has not been widely reported.

The area around the embassies seemed well under control There were plenty of police and paramilitary forces to keep order, with signs with arrows that said "Walking Route" and pointed a windy road around the embassy district. Several places were very off limits, marked by the lines of policeman who would not let people pass. (On the other hand, the police were clearly not trying to break things up.) I did get lots of hard looks and I had to duck reporters, but things never got ugly. I'd hear people say things like "He can't be American, if so, why would he be here?" -- I was trying to pass as Australian -- and the ranks of police kept me feeling safe.

The American embassy itself was a little more volatile. Standing in front of the compound was not allowed, and the huge number of police kept the crowd flowing pretty well. The building was a mess, with the flag still left up, and the door open, windows broken, walls stained, and lots of tossed bottles and rocks all around. I heard the reports that Ambassador Sasser is still inside. Things were even more out of control near the British embassy, where people were still chucking rocks at the buildings.

I wondered what would happen if everybody knew America and NATO had apologized for the bombing? It would probably make little difference. The government is clearly using these protests to hype nationalism. After taking many pictures, my friend and I left, heading back for campus.
salon.com | May 10, 1999

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