Foreigners attacked in Beijing? A recap

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

After my earlier post, also on WeChat, as well as postings by others, I could tentatively conclude: there might be indeed some isolated incidents but it is not a big trend. Well, a bit reassuring. It there were more, for sure some people would have come forward, or?
See here some of the postings I found, slightly edited but leaving the text as it is, just putting it all together:

quote
Don’t want to scare anyone. But please watch out your back. There is a group of Chinese guys attacking foreigners that go out with Chinese girls or guys. They always attack with baseball bats and iron loads. They already attacked in village, around heavens and wudaokou, the street of Blcu, houhai and nanluguxiang.They usually use a grey Bmw but pay attention to other cars too. Usually if they are driving and see foreigners and Chinese together they get out of the car and start yelling Chinese girls belong to Chinese guys. This is the info that I got from victims that contacted me yesterday. They attack foreigners: white, blacks, Hispanic
Please share and if you know any case please tell them to report to the police and write an article at the magazines that are read by expats. …
Call the police or go to the police station to report the situation. They already know this but did not identify them.
Heard that a group of 4 had baseball bats yesterday @ wudaokou and that this group is looking only for foreigners. So anyone knows if this is true or not?? Because my female friend also got attacked by by a group of guys in Uibe area.
All the cases happened with foreigner guys walking with Chinese or Mongolian girls
unquote

And this is the only published article I could find:
http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2014/12/foreign-victim-of-alleged-attack-says-stay-polite/

Well, if anybody has comments, let me know. And always better to be careful. Anyway I think Beijing is safer than many parts of Belgium where unfriendly foreigners are aggressive towards … Belgians. Or, the world upside down.

Beijing Yashow to Close for Renovation 31 December

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Yashow, one of the most popular shops for foreigners, is closing for renovations soon, and who knows what sort of stores will return. As a result enormous crowds have invaded the store to grab Christmas bargains. The store is on Gongti Bei Lu, next to The Village (yeah yeah it changed name to Tai Ko Li something).
As reported on local websites:

Legal Daily, the source of the news, interviewed a shop owner who has been at Yashow since its opening 12 years ago told the reporter that “all shop owners received a notice from Yashow’s administration that our contract won’t be renewed after this year, and we were asked to move out by December 31.” Now the sweaters that used to sell for few hundred kuai are sold only RMB 35, and the jackets which were priced RMB 500 are sold only for a fifth of that.
“We are just selling as much as we can for we are moving soon,” said the shop owner. When asked whether he would come back after the renovation, he shook his head and said that “he would see.”

141214 yashows

The report doesn’t speculate if the renovation will make the place more high-end, but the rent will certainly go up. Mrs. Chen, owner of a socks shop, told the reporter that the rent of her shop is about RMB 40k per year now, and she speculated that it would probably go up to RMB 200k-300k per year. She said that if the rent hike would stay within a reasonable range, she would still come back for the sake of her regular clients and “her attachment to the place.”
A worker at Yashow’s supermarket said, “We only know that the contracts won’t be renewed but we know nothing about what the place will be like after the renovation,” adding “Probably only those shop owners who can afford a higher rent will come back.”
The renovation will be finished next April. Many shop owners said that “they will wait and see.”

I admit we have been part of that crowd to empty the stores. Bought some very good stuff there, at a ridiculous bargain price, one can wonder: fake or genuine stuff? Honestly, the fakes are that good I have no idea at all.

Old China Hands Lunch 5 December

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

Before the holiday period, one more great get together at More’s restaurant for the brave souls who have endured (?) China for at least ten years.

The next round will be on Wednesday 7 January as the first Friday is 2 January, not so convenient.

Benjamin Lim, Thomson Reuters, talking to Rotary Beijing

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove
in Rotary

During our weekly lunch at the Kempinski on 16 December we had another exceptional speaker.
Indeed, Benjamin is a seasoned journalist with a sharp vision, the North Asia Specialist Correspondent from Thomson Reuters in Beijing.
He gave us his valuable remarks and insights on how the new Chinese top team tries to steer China through a rather difficult period.

Introduction was done by Rtn Joerg, thanks to speaker by Rtn Alan.
Our Club president Piper also briefed us on the latest Club news.
For once I was lucky: there was indeed a December birthday cake! (They often forget about us December Bday people).
It was also exactly Joerg’s birthday. Pictured the tree December lucky fellows: Joerg, Stéphane and myself.

Chinese men attack foreigners in Beijing?

Posted on by Gilbert Van Kerckhove

These days on Wechat several postings on reported incidents where foreigners are being attacked in Beijing by a group of Chinese men and beaten up. Several locations are mentioned. Attacks seem to occur if the foreigner is accompanied “by Chinese or Mongolian girl”.
Those “rumors” are not new and we have had a case of an American intern being beaten up on the street, for no reason, years ago. He left China the next day.
I would recommend, if those things happen, to file a police report and insist they check the CCTV cameras on the street. They are installed a bit everywhere.
It would be interesting to know in how far this is happening. And the police should seriously look into this, to check in how far those incidents happen, and why.