Every so often, a traffic accident gets blown out of proportion in China, previously it was the Lexus incident, but this time its the students, and not the taxi drivers flipping cars.
Traffic accidents in China often draw large crowds who seemingly act as judge and jury until the police arrive to sort things out officially, however, the crowds often manage to incite more trouble, as shown here:
This post was taken from a Chinese BBS that was written by a student who was present at the scene.
This is how it was …
A female student was bicycling down the right side of the street on her way back to the dormitory, and a Buick vehicle came along in the same direction. The two vastly different vehicles collided with each other, and the bicycle left a scratch of 20 to 30 millimeters on the car.
At that time, the female car owner got out of the vehicle angrily and demanded an apology from the student. Furthermore, an apology was not good enough because there had to be payment for damages. So the student called her teacher for assistance. By this time, many students had gathered around the scene and one of them asked the car owner: “Where do you come from? Why are you on our school campus?”
The woman said something that was provocative: “If I produce my identification document, you should be scared to death.”
So the students began to confront the car owner while refusing to listen to the police. The police pulled the car owner aside and began a discussion. But the elder brother of the car owner has shown up with some friends. They talked tough and they began shoving the students around! The students were infuriated and there was physical contact. But since the car owner is female, the students restrained themselves.
Then a male student tried to make scratch marks on the car. The brother of the car owner assaulted him and they also demanded that the police take him in. According to rumors, the male students was severely injured (note: it was very chaotic at the time).
Then we called 120 (note: emergency medical service) and an ambulance came to take the injured male student away. The elder brother of the car owner saw trouble coming and quietly sneaked away. This became the focus of the story later on.
The woman was trapped. Her mother came. Although the mother was an elderly lady, she was just as unreasonable and barbaric. The campus security guards also came. But we chased them away. Then the security director came, and the students asked; “How did a car without a permit enter campus? What do you guys do for a living?”
A teacher showed up and promised that the chancellor will be here.
Before the chancellor could arrive, the students demanded that the car owner turn over the person who conducted the physical assault on the male student. That would be the elder brother of the car owner. But the car owner refused to say a word.
Then the security guards showed up again. We started cursing and yelling, and called them a bunch of pigs. Someone said that the security guards were letting outsiders without student ID’s come and go in the university. We now have proof that a vehicle without a permit could come and go on university campus. The security guards were speechless and they could only glare at us. At that moment, someone began to assault the car. First, they broke the windshield glass. Then they yanked out the registration plate.
A teacher came to mediate, but he was told to scram. The security guards tried to stop the vandalism, but the students would not budge and held them off. A teacher then said that the chancellor would come in ten minutes. We stood and counted ten minutes. He did not show up, and so we started to assault the car again. The police tried to stop us, but the students pushed them out. There was some physical contact. One police officer was hit and left holding his head in his hands. The police did not come back again.
The teachers who tried to intercede were dragged off. We asked the people on the other side to disperse, and then we overturned the car. The female car owner tried to stop us, but we dragged her off by force. The car was overturned and the chancellor still had not shown up.
Someone there said that he was from the Student Affairs Office, but the students told him to scram (and that applied to the teachers, security guards and police officers).
Then we broke all the windows on the car and nearly ripped the car doors out. It was quite a scene. But the car was solidly built as the front window never came off.
A student leader jumped on the car and tried to speak, but we couldn’t hear what he was saying. On one hand, his voice had gone hoarse from all the yelling. On the other hand, too many other people were yelling.
Then we Nankai University students got together and sang our school song! When the school song is sung, all Nankai people are united. Back then, the Japanese military bombed our campus but they could not destroy our unity!!! So this city bum couldn’t count for anything!!!!
Finally, Chancellor Zhang Jing appeared and promised:
1. The students will not be pursued for responsibility
2. Traffic within the campus will be improved
3. The instigator will be pursued in accordance with the law.
Pictures from the disturbance, click for bigger!
Many thanks to ESWN for translating the original story from Chinese to English.
Pity Chinese students aren’t so passionate about studying or using their brains.
Pity you don’t have any brains
so you agree that any traffic dispute should end up with a mob flipping and burning cars??
So you agree that the female student should pay for this?
If it can be proved that she was the one at fault then yes. But seeing the behavior of the Buick driver afterwards that would be difficult to prove. The university is a restricted property and the car should have followed all of the driving rules within the university. If the driver was driving too close to the bicycle and the bike clipped her then its just bad luck. The way she behaved afterwards was not appropriate for the situation. If the student had been hurt physically then it would have been the car drivers fault regardless…. cars are bigger and stronger than bikes.
It doesn’t help that neither the car driver or the student on the bike was probably not looking where where they were going but this is a normal Chinese driving habit.
so, you are saying you don’t only agree people should flip and burn cars for every traffic dispute, but you also support it…
Of course, if there was more flipping over and burning of cars here then they might learn to obey the rules and drive properly in the first place;-)
I propose we form a work unit with that sole purpose and get compensated for any materials we use… anyone with me?
The drivers brother inflamed the situation by physically attacking a student and then ran off… if he had stayed he might have got the whip@ss he deserved instead of the car.
OFF COURSE!!!!
that punk tried to scratch his sister’s sedan!!! HE WAS DEFENDING HIS SISTER AND HER PROPERTY!!!!
THAT is understandable!! DEFENSE!!! What’s not understandable is why would that student go to physical assault!!! By physical assault I don’t only mean beating someone… he made the first step trying to scratch the car!!
The elder brother had already started shoving people around BEFORE the student tried scratching the vehicle….
well.. the bottomline, both are at fault.. the car shouldn’t be there.. and they should realise it’s a communist country where ppl are much more united.. but still, at least e students should be abit punished..
No sympathy for someone who thinks she owns the road. The b**** had to mouth off and then keep on mouthing off. Here in the states its called road rage and is usually reserved for the brainless.
This is better than watching the funnies!!!
Bodes well for the future of China!!
Typical Chinese mob behavior. I suppose that’s what you get when you don’t teach people to think for themselves in university. The students should be kicked out of school right away, and pay off the damages for the next couple of years. Maybe then they will understand that they you cannot destroy other people’s property.
just an observation
why do people tick for leather if they put these awful nasty things over their seats…??
Because the Buick is only available with leather seats. The seat covers are very ugly indeed. Maybe that’s why the students decided to destroy the car.
hahahaha, ok, so that’s totally justified now..
If you have a country with no consequences for actions taken this is the sort of mindless crap you can expect. Its even shown in their shopping at Carrefour, walking down the street, not to mention driving and business!
I would say that these ignorant students will make excellent future goverment and party leaders and of course tops in their chosen proffesions!
The truely sad thing is the ’student’ writting the above epistle seems very proud of his and his mates actions.
As for the police and Univ Chancellor……….FURK ME with a frozen Buick leather seat cover!
Mark, The first commenter, I think it is white American and European students who aren’t passionate about studying and using their brains. I am sure there are at least 100 road rage incidents in America or Europe for every incident like the one above in China.
since when has this become a discussion about the colour of the people involved??
I just can’t understand people blindly defending causes like this…
This is not about the rest of the World against China, it’s about the TRIBAL behavior described above, and what really sickens me is how the narrator is proud of everything he says.
Seems like Nankai has NO PUBLIC SAFETY at all!!!!
>>>Then we broke all the windows on the car and nearly ripped the car doors out. It was quite a scene.
It’s clear that the narrator was very proud of their actions..
>>>One police officer was hit and left holding his head in his hands. The police did not come back again
Seems like people there are left by their own will… police is useless and have no authority, there’s no anti-mob squad and if you dare to walk on the streets you are on your own luck…
>>>Then we Nankai University students got together and sang our school song! When the school song is sung, all Nankai people are united.
this sounds like the behavior of a TRIBAL RAGE unleashed on that lady.
I’m surprised they didn’t gather around her, cut her head off and eaten their insides….
her insides
I think road rage incidents in the west are mostly driver V’s driver, in China it usually turns into crowd v’s driver vs driver.
what really amazed me was how USELESS was the public authority.
Situation normal Jackson, they are TOATALLY USELESS!!
Not all of them are useless…. it just depends how much you have to pay them to help you…..
Great to see Chinese students showing some fire and school spirit! Too bad for the lady who struck the match, but how shortsighted do you have to be to publically berate, belittle and humiliate a student on their own turf, especially at a school with a rather fiery nationalist tradition like Nankai? Just like the rest of China, there’s plenty of pent-up frustration on college campuses and pulling rank with the “If you knew who I am…” gambit seems a good bet toward receiving some very un-harmonious societal payback. Unfortunately, her second stupid mistake was calling in her own muscle for backup…nothing better to set off a gathering mob than a group of 平头 thugs (real or perceived) throwing their (real or perceived) weight around. It’s scary and exhilarating at the same time to see just how ineffective law enforcement can be in these situations. Completely unsurprising on the other hand, is yet another example illustrating the efficacy of those wooden fenceposts otherwise known as “security guards”.
I will agree that the one male student who tried to key the lady’s car in a fit of misguided chivalry deserved whatever whoop-ass he received.
nationalist or not, frustrated or not….
that was a tribal reaction only justified some centuries ago…
Wrong. It was totally justified. Its good to see Chinese students standing up for themselves against corrupt privelege.
Two wrongs dont make a right!!
I wonder who would win in a fight between the angry student mob and the angry taxi driver mob???
Whoever’s taking the driver’s side in this obviously hasn’t lived in China long. I’ll bet a kidney that dame in the car was being a typical “I get the right of way because I can kill you” Chinese driver, and pulled some a-hole maneuver. The fact that she jumped out to demand the bicyclist apologize and pay corroborates my theory. I think it was Mao who said “Only bloodshed will teach us that pedestrians and bicyclists have the right of way over automobiles.”
two wrongs dont make a right Ernie-you have a valid point, but both sides are wrong and typically it can happen ‘ONLY IN CHINA’
I hear ya, Dog, but this story calls for more than proverbs. The students were provoked by wannabe bigwigs trying to throw their weight around. Their reaction was understandable. The bigwigs’ were inexcusable.
Its history repeating!
But we shall not mention such things on CCT.
@Ernie
I’m right there with you, man.
As a bicyclist, a resident of Shanghai, and a constant near-victim of crappy (read: unskilled and arrogant) Chinese drivers, I suspect that the woman in question was just as irrationally demanding as described. I can almost see her face in my head–eyes rolled and lips curled in the best “little empress” impersonation she could muster. If asked, I might be able to draw it from memory. Lord knows I’ve seen it a million times, state-side and elsewhere. Bitch.
Let’s do the math, shall we? Two-ton car versus a fifty pound bike and a skinny Chinese girl. Hmm? Who could possibly win that one? Who’s obligation might it be to watch where you’re fucking going!!!
In any case, and despite my obvious anti-combustion engine bias, one might actually be able to make an argument that this whole violent scene was the best of all possible conclusions, at least for China. What some have idealistically dismissed as “mob behavior” could just as easily be perceived as a kind of immediate street justice, akin to the pre-constitution American “mob behavior” against the British imperialists.
I mean, given the inconsistencies (I’m being generous) of the Chinese legal system, I doubt any young female student on her bike could seriously post a legitimate defense against just such a driver. This was, after all, a common bitch (my description) wealthy enough to own a car and to be driving it without a license in a forbidden area. In Chinese terms that means she has either power, money, or connections (”guanxi”), all of which tend to mean corruption, as is further indicated by the sheepish behavior of the school security personnel.
At least in this scenario, the next generation of educated Chinese citizens realize that group efforts to respond to blatant socio-economic inequalities (a significant problem here) do have some efficacy. It’s not pretty, of course, but it works. Campus policy was changed, the kids got off, there’s now one less car for them to worry about, and the bitch (again, my description) will face some degree of legal consequence. I venture to suggest, in China this is as close to a win as one can get.
Let’s hope these young people can parlay this ugly win into a series of honest reforms for the Middle Kingdom.
And will somebody please track down that cowardly brother?!? I’ve got a bike chain waiting for his ass. Justice before peace, my friends.
rynsa
I could not have said it better myself, friend.
Perfectly articulated!
Ernie, your story is based on suppositions… what we are commenting here is the story shown above.
I just CAN’T understand why people are defending these kind of reactions! Don’t you see this only makes chinese people image even worse!!
What Dog’s said is totally correct! Two wrongs don’t make a right. It doesn’t matter if the lady was right or not. If she was wrong, what should’ve been done was to call authorities and let them decide what her punishment should be.
And what surprises me even more, is that those were university students, not some yokel farmers…
If everyone makes justice with their own hands, I can only imagine society in China behaving like some primitive tribe.
and yes… I have lived in China, for 14 months. and I’m still amazed they haven’t cut her head off and dragged her body around the campus…
“I know the Italians; I’ve worked with them. They will read this one with their eyes closed.”
- Al Pacino, Carlito’s Way
Suppositions, shmuppositions, Jackson. The facts as reported support my theory, and I’m not approving anyone’s reactions. But I understand.
You’re on your bike, on your campus, and here comes the umpteenth car honking for you to get out of the way, just like they do when they want to pass in the bike lane, then the car swipes you, and the umpteenth Mandarin jumps out wanting you to kowtow? I’m not saying she should have pulled an O.J. But I would’ve understood.
And Jackson, why you gotta derogate the farmers? We’re not going to make any progress as a country until yellow brothers stop being ashamed of their silent majority.
@Ernie
You’re on-point yet again. I can’t offer anything to you except my full agreement.
@Mr. Liu
You seem, like many in China, to be far more concerned about the “image” of your people than you are about the multitude of real-world injustices they face everyday. This is by definition a superficial perspective, and I believe you are doing yourself and your countrymen (not to mention the girl on the bike) a disservice by not honoring the political implications of this whole situation at Nankai University.
Here’s what I hear you saying: “Oh, god, no! I wish they hadn’t destroyed that luxury vehicle. Forget justice! Forget humanity! I just don’t want the rest of the world thinking we’re a bunch of primates. National image is far more valuable than the rights of a fellow citizen.”
Well, perhaps, instead of trying to protect your precious reputation, you might consider applying a more critical eye to the issue of corruption in China. Maybe then you’ll begin to see what some respondents to this post have tried to articulate–China has a big problem with bad drivers getting away with crime, and strong reaction to that from the disenfranchised is entirely understandable.
Why must an innocent University student on a bicycle, like so many others in China (myself included), be harassed by yet another corrupt car-driver simply because you want to save face?!?
hahahaha
I don’t think you really got me right…
I DON’T LIVE IN CHINA, and DON’T GIVE A CR@P about it’s image.
I’m commenting about the story above, and only about that..
About the primitive reaction of those people: let’s not change the subject.
and, you are wrong again… it’s EXACTLY about humanity and justice that I’m talking about.
But you were right for one thing, though… yes, I REALLY DON’T WANT the rest of the world to think like primates. By the way you put it, seems like you are willing that..
sorry man!
Rynsa is spot on with this post. Sometimes injustices must be rectified and if the system is corrupt then it too should be looked at with a critical eye. People rioting doesn’t negatively affect China’s international image at all. The corruption and cronyism and poor labor conditions and pollution are what negatively affect China’s image.
first, what’s with the Italians????
ok, you understand. So you probably understand also the fact that in modern and civilized societies, people should all follow one law, people should call authorities, and authorities should HAVE authority.
The story above was the typical eye-for-an-eye reaction, people wanting to make justice (if you can call that justice) with their own hands…
so, how MUCH of that mob violence were you willing to “understand”? That crowd (say, it was about 200 people againt 4) destroyed that lady’s property. They flipped the Buick… I guess that you think that if they had set fire in the car, that would also be ok… afterall, it’s just one more step…
and now, what if they had beaten that lady, would that be acceptable too?? What if they had killed someone?? So, how MUCH of that “justified” mob reaction would be “undestandable”??
Those students were right until they decided to physically assault them.
if you think that’s acceptable, and that’s better for your country, than be happy with that…
If that happened in my country, I would be horrified, instead of trying to force understanding and finding justifications for those actions…
I’m fairly certain that the authorities would not have brought forth any punishment for the driver, given the apparent fact of her having considerable connection. While your argument sounds good, it is too simple and too idealistic given the circumstances. Not saying that public vandalism should be considered generally acceptable behavior, but I, for one, am glad to see the students stand up against such ruthless and shameless behavior as opposed to folding like lawn chairs.
ernie, what facts related above supports your suppostions?
>> I’ll bet a kidney that dame in the car was being a typical “I get the right of way because I can kill you” Chinese driver, and pulled some a-hole maneuver. The fact that she jumped out to demand the bicyclist apologize and pay corroborates my theory.
again
it’s just a theory. Haven’t you considered that the chick in the bicicle could be the responsible for the accident? Let’s not forget this story was narrated by a student, which by the way, was very proud of showing his primitive rage against that lady, “the enemy from the outside”…
and again:
how do you know that student was the innocent one in the story?? how do you know the car driver was corrupt?
just like ernie, it’s all based on suppositions!
If it is for us to discuss about it, let’s keep it with the story shown!
Let’s not forget again, that the story was told by a student, which was clearly on the side of the university.
and again
how do you know the student was the innocent one in the story?? how do you know the car driver was corrupt??
Just like ernie, your story is all based on suppositions!!
If it is for us to discuss it, let’s keep it with the story shown!
Let’s not forget again, that the story was told by a student that was clearly on the side of the university.
sorry for the duplicate
this was supposed to be the reply for rynsa
Jackson -
“At that time, the female car owner got out of the vehicle angrily and demanded an apology from the student. Furthermore, an apology was not good enough because there had to be payment for damages. So the student called her teacher for assistance.”
Either you’re not reading for comprehension, or “supposition” is the only four-syllable word in your arsenal. Thanks though, Jackson; this is officially boring now. On to the next thread…
suppositions supposition suppositions
yeah!
this is really all I can speak…
sorry teacher, if I haven’t learnt any other english word while I was in elementary…
I keep on insisting in your unfunded suppositions because they just have no support at all!
What’s the deal about her demanding an apology?? What’s the problem about her demanding a refund for the scratch… if the chick in the bicycle did actually crash into the car, I see no reason why she couldn’t demand an apology or a payment.
I guess you own me a kidney… how is it going to be, via FedEx??
Jackson, did you miss the part of the story where the woman, after being questioned why she was driving without a permit on a secure campus, said that her credentials would “scare you to death?” This suggests to me that she has connections, probably to some mid-level local officials. If this doesn’t spell corruption, I don’t know what would.
I would agree will your comments had the driver been a regular and reasonable person, which simply was not the case.
Then again, if you question the validity of this story teller’s account of what actually took place, then we can all stop arguing right now because we’d have nothing else to go on.
This is going to instill lots of confidence in the international community for the olympics. Mob action is mob action, regardless of who was at fault. Mindless violence if you ask me.
As an American I think it sounds like it was definitely the fault of the woman in the car. The initial incident sounds like her fault and then her asinine behavior seems to have escalated the situation.
Is rioting and destroying property an ideal situation? No, but if this privileged woman was bullying common people she should expect things to get ugly. Maybe now her and her ilk will show a little more respect. In general people should respect other people and their property but some situations call for drastic measures.
When I was in Ghaunzhou I was amazed by how horrible the drivers were. No one seemed to follow the rules. That aspect was scary. In America the people in the accident would probably have waited for the police to sort it out (they would have been there in under 10 min). The rich woman would have known not to mess with students.
This story is a good example of some of the class issues that China will have to address in the near future. I don’t know what the solution is, but more individual freedoms countered by individual responsibility along with a strong but FAIR system of rules works for our large multi-ethnic society.
The drivers in Guangzhou are still crazy. My driver never looks left when turning right….
There are rules but there are never really enforced. The only time I have seen the cops is at major intersections where they give tickets for minor infringements such as having a box of tissues on the dashboard in front of the passenger(I am not joking).
If an accident happened in front of a non traffic officer (in a marked police car) the cop would just drive away because its not his department.
Women Drivers, amiright?
hahahahahaha
it was a woman riding the bicycle, as well!!
We all know this is also Bush’s fault.
probaly the cicle driver didnt see the car, and the car driver did.
I think that the car driver was driving faster than the cicle.
Lastly: force a poor student to pay the damages of your luxury car when you are wrong only because the car driver was VIP, can and must end like this.
The car did not had permission.
This will stop the “master and servants” minds only like the Bastille did.
If you can afford that car, you can paint it when you have an accident.
That’s how we roll!
LMAO
The view from America:
I read this thread, and I think that in China there’s a powerful feeling among the people that they are being abused by a powerful minority. And there’s a powerful movement building to make them behave better, to force them to respect those who do not have the power or wealth they do.
As an American, a native of a country in which the rich and powerful are not allowed to get away with abusing the poor (though we do still have poor people), and where the poor have the law on their side, I cheer the aspirations of the Chinese people as shown by the students in Nanjing.
This incident goes to show not all who attain higher learning have the same or equal moral standings
the driver should have chained around the neck to the rear bumper and dragged through the city, then they should have hunted down her family and lynched everyone with her DNA. Good job students, thats how you protect each other and look out for each other.
Interesting how some people who don’t agree with the story posted are very vocal about the reaction being primitive.
Interesting as well is the counter point of pride.
Either way, no one won. Everyone lost. There was no middle way chosen, but that’s OK. You must be able to embrace the worst as well as the best in humanity.
I only wish this forceful reaction was evident when Tienanmen square had occurred.
Regardless, this is life. Do unto others before they do unto you or if they have already done unto you.
Peace I give you and wish for you.
Mark, no real offense intended here but Tiananmen happened almost 19 years ago. China has grown up a lot since then…. some ways good, some ways not so good but in the past 18.5 years the Chinese quality of life for many people has improved a great deal and the people are slowly becoming aware that life does exist beyond the borders that surround it…. if we are going to look at history (on a CHINESE VEHICLE site) then shouldn’t we also be asking the Japanese about what they did in WW2 to the uni involved or of any cover ups by allied forces afterwards??? Nanjing in general is a thorn in the side for Chinese-Japanese relations………
What if the Buick ran over the girl on the bike and caused her death, THUS SCRATCHING THE HELL OUT OF HER CAR. Would the students be any less enraged? All this for a scratch just over an inch long!
After reading this the first time, I was appaled…that
stuident is a moron.
After reading it the second time, it started striking me
as funny…however - the student is still a moron.
The third time, I couldn’t stop laughing. Yup..you
guessed it - moron.
I’m glad that I am hearing this before I buy tickets to fly to the Olympics. Those students are out of hand and a security threat. I won’t take the chance of having my family exposed to such barbaric mob tactics. They may have a hard time getting people with families to attend.
just plain old mob rule, the students that damaged the car should pay for getting it fixed . there are more important things to worry about in the world , and what concern of the other students what she or any else has do there none. what a bunch of busybodys they are she could have been visting some 1 at the campus thats none of their biz . its too bad this world has gotten to be having big brother in your back pocket . why dont you get back to studying and riding your bikes and leave well enough alone.
Wow, this does not say much for supposed college students, the group sounds like a bunch of drunken yahoos at a football game, not educated individuals. I think most of these students need to return to fifth grade and relearn how to handle situations. Everyone who damaged the car should have been expelled the nest day, without refunds, without a chance to appeal. Regardless who’s fault it was, it was the students who over stepped the line and should have been treated like the idiots they are. Do you all mean to tell me these were actually adults who did this? Sounds like a bunch of jr. high drop outs.
An rich elitest learns Karma the hard way. There is justice in this world.
It sounds like the woman driving felt she was above the law; driving where she shouldn’t be driving and then crashed into the cyclist - who I think was lucky not not to be injured.
The driver and her family behaved as if they were mafia; I think the police should investigate them fully.
In a real sense what is a mob but a group with a set of ideals using their weight to make others do as they want them to or do as they want to with disregard for others. The car culture and idea that they have the right above cyclists and pedestrians and using that weight to force their will on others is also a mob.
This act was only putting a tiny sliver into that mob. It will be remember no longer than it takes for the sliver to fester and be pushed from the body. Then it will be back to business as usual.
I don’t agree with the outcome but as a cyclist who has been hit a number of times by careless drivers I would have in the heat of the moment been part of that mob and probably the student who got his ass kicked. The power of the mob is amazing no matter what side you are on.
Nearly every great social change or change of ideals begins with an angry mob. The term “mob rules” doesn’t come about for any reason but this: If the mob is big enough you will have the mobs rules. In this case only for a short moment but still all the same in outcome.
On a greater scale its the car culture mob and its rules where people believe an idiot who hit a cyclists thinks the person should pay for a scratch on her car.
Soon China like everywhere else will hit the road in the masses in automobiles and if we don’t a viable alternative for fuel the car culture will die and wither away like all other bad ideas we’ve left in the past.
One other thing. A Buick in China? I can’t imagine that car would suck less there than it does here. Come on. You can’t find a better car to ship from halfway across the world so you can claim superiority over others?