So somehow after what seems like an eternity of really boring news, 新京报/The Beijing News has turned the magic back on again. I’ve already referred to a few articles today, but the need to take care of the Mrs, who is starting to look more healthy but is still a ways from one hundred percent, has stopped me from going into any kind of depth or detail (not that I ever do, but…) Anyway, this article really grabbed my attention: Two foreigners stabbed in two separate incidents and no apparent motive:
男青年先后扎伤两老外
Young male successively stabs two Westerners
[Note: I’m running with the more “realistic” if less lexicographically precise translation of 老外 as ‘Westerner’. I mean, it may mean foreigner, but how often do you hear it used to refer to Koreans or Africans or Indians? Well, maybe sometimes…. Anyway, I don’t want to get into this debate. Back to the subject at hand:]
事发朝外丰联广场、北京站东街附近，一俄罗斯男子伤势较重
Incidents happend at Chaowai’s Fenglian Plaza and near Beijingzhan East Road. One Russian seriously injured
昨日中午12时、下午2时30分左右，朝外丰联广场、北京站东街附近，两名外国男子先后被扎伤。其中一名俄罗斯男子伤势较重。
At 12 noon yesterday and then at about 2:30 pm at Chaowai Fenglian Plaza and then near Beijingzhan East Street, two foreign men were stabbed successively. One was a Russian who was seriously injured.
北京市公安局昨晚证实，嫌疑人为一名男青年。目前，警方正全力侦查。
Last night the Beijing Municipal Public Security Bureau confirmed that the suspect was a young man. Currently, the police are sparing no effort in the investigation.
现场1 12:00
Scene 1 12:00
闹市遇袭
Attack in a busy commercial area
事发丰联广场北侧人行道，紧邻朝外大街。
The incident occurred on the footpath on the north side of Fenglian Plaza, bordering Chaowai Dajie.
昨日下午1时，5名民警在勘察现场，其中1人对路边的一摊血迹进行拍摄，另4人分别对目击者做笔录。
At one yesterday afternoon, 5 police were at the crime scene, one photographing a bloodstain, four others interviewing witnesses.
距血迹20米远的一报摊摊主说，中午12时，一名黄头发的外国人由西向东路过丰联广场北门停车场，突然遭到袭击，之后外国人发出求救声。保安闻讯赶到时，外国人已倒在台阶下，血迹布满一地。整个过程仅1分钟。
The owner of a newsstand 20 metres from the bloodstain said, at 12 noon a blond foreigner walking from west to east past the Fenglian Plaza North Gate carpart was suddenly attacked, then the foreigner called for help. When security heard the news and rushed out, the foreigner had already fallen to the curb in a puddle of blood. The whole incident lasted less than a minute.
据一名保安介绍，伤者被抬上出租车后，送往朝阳医院抢救。
According to a security guard, the victim was lifted into a taxi and sent to Chaoyang Hospital.
“没见到行凶的人。”事发地附近多位市民说。
“Didn’t see the assailant” many passersby said after the incident.
昨日下午1时30分，勘察现场的民警在血迹中找到类似头发的物品，放入信封。
At 1:30 yesterday afternoon, police at the crime scene found similar hairs in the blood stain and put them in an envelope.
一旁，头戴帽子的报警人向民警介绍，当时外国人没有背包，手上只拿了一份英文报纸。行凶者向东逃窜，很快不见踪影。
To one side, a witness told police that at that time the foreigner wasn’t carrying a bag, he carried only an English newspaper in his hand. The assailant fled to the east, leaving no trace.
现场2 14:30
Scene 2 14:30
餐厅遭抢
Restaurant robbery
昨日下午3时许，北京站东街恒基中心西侧一层的吉野家餐厅，七八辆警车已将现场包围，十余刑警手持各种器材，进进出出，展开勘察。
At about 3 yesterday afternoon, in the Yoshinoya restaurant on the west side of the first (ground) floor of the Henderson Centre on Beijingzhan East Road, seven or eight police cars had already surrounded the scene and a dozen criminal police carrying every kind of equipment were coming and going, carrying out the investigation.
透过玻璃窗，可见血迹从最内侧餐桌旁通道一直延伸至门口台阶上。
Looking through the window, a bloodstain stretching from the innermost table right to the doorstep could be seen.
“抱歉，暂不营业了。”面对不时而来的顾客，几名服务人员站在门口，逐一解释，并贴出通知。
“Sorry, we’re temporarily closed,” several staff said to untimely customers, explaining as they hung a notice.
餐厅女负责人表示，因事发突然，事后其查看店内探头录像才知道事情经过。
The woman in charge of the restaurant said that because the incident happened so quickly, it was only by watching the video that they could see how it happened.
据该负责人介绍，下午2时30分左右，一名中国籍男子尾随一名外国男子进入店内，当外国男子捧着食物走到内侧拐角处座位就餐时，尾随男子突然从正面冲上去，抢夺对方的布袋，“两人拉扯了几下，他（抢劫者）拿刀连扎了外国人几下，拽着包就跑。”
She said that at about 2:30 pm a Chinese man followed a foreign man into the restaurant. As the foreign man took his food into the restaurant to eat and was turning around a table, the man who followed him suddenly attacked him from the front, stealing his bag. “The two struggled for a bit, then he (the assailant) took a knife and stabbed the foreigner a few times, grabbed the bag and ran.”
该负责人称，行凶男子动作非常迅速，前后用时才数秒钟。随后，前台服务员见有人受伤，立即追了出去，发现行凶者向北京站广场方向跑去。后店方为伤者包扎了伤口，并联系120送到协和医院抢救，“警察还在追查凶手，他的样貌不便透露。”
She said the assailant moved very fast, taking only a few seconds. Immediately after, the front desk staff saw an injured person and immediately ran after him, seeing that the assailant had run towards Beijing Railway Station. Then the staff helped the victim dress his wounds and called 120 [note: the emergency number for an ambulance] to send him to Peking Union Hospital [why does google go apeshit with a malware warning on that website?]. “The police are still looking for the assailant. He is not easy to describe.”
有目击者称，行凶男子着深色外衣，1米7的个头，短发。
Witnesses said the assailant was a man, wearing a dark jacket, short hair, about 1.7 metres tall.
■ 事后
■ Afterwards
民警给伤者送鲜花
Police sent the victims flowers
昨日下午4时许，两名受伤的外国男子正在协和医院国际医疗部接受治疗。
At about 4 yesterday afternoon, the two foreign victims were receiving treatment in the international clinic of Peking Union Hospital.
医护人员称，40岁左右的美国男子手部、背部及腿部有外伤，情况不严重。俄罗斯男子身中4刀，分别位于手臂、腹部等处，伤势较重。
Medical staff said the American man of roughly 40 years of age had been injured in the hand, back and leg, but not seriously. The Russian man had been injured more seriously four times in areas such as the arm and stomach.
俄罗斯男子的妻子称，丈夫刚到北京一两天。事发时，丈夫从银行取完钱后去吃午餐。其被抢的布袋内有一部两万多元的笔记本电脑及钱包等物。
The Russian man’s wife said that her husband had just arrived in Beijing one or two days previously. When the incident occurred, her husband had just drawn money from the bank and was going to eat lunch. In the bag that was stolen was a laptop worth over 20 thousand yuan and a wallet.
昨日下午5时10分，北京市出入境管理处的十余民警与院方代表为两名伤者及家属送上鲜花。
At 5:10 yesterday afternoon a dozen officers and representatives of the Beijing Municipal Entry and Exit Bureau brought fresh flowers to the two victims and their families.
据协和医院院长助理介绍，美国伤者已无生命危险，正在休息，俄罗斯伤者尚在抢救中。
According to an assistant to the head of the Peking Union Hospital, the American victim is already out of danger and is resting, the Russian victim is still being treated.
Alright: It’s a bloody awful translation. Sorry. After a day of looking out for a sick colleague and taking care of my ill wife, I’m a bit tired. Actually, the fact that I even translated this shows that my wife is getting better- she was needing less attention, therefore I had more time to spend first reading then translating. Anyways, as always, corrections are welcome. This time because of the conditions under which I read the article- I’ve almost certainly got something wrong.
Secondly: Be careful out there. I’m not seeing this as an “anti-foreign” thing, although the crim in question quite likely targetted “foreigners” because everybody born with white skin is born with a collossal huge trust account [I’m still waiting for the keys to mine…]… but back in the real world, even if the skin colour of the victims was an attraction to the crim this time, doesn’t mean, well, much.
Actually, I am a little freaked at the possibility foreigners, specifically those allegedly rich white kind of foreigners, were targeted this time. That’s just absurd, for starters. There’s a hell of a lot more Chinese driving BMWs than there are foreigners of any kind driving any kind of car. Still, that ridiculous prejudice exists.
But these two incidents do not make a trend. Especially considering the locations: Places those mythical foreigners would be expected to be.
Also, a lot of foreigners I’ve met over the last nine years, especially the white-skinned variety, have blethered on endlessly about how much safer China is than their home countries. I strongly suspect that if these bletherers ever learnt enough Chinese to open their local newspaper on a regular basis and browse the headlines, they’d discover China’s just as safe as their home country.
So I’m not making much sense, but: Don’t panic, but for crying out loud keep your wits about you, especially when you’re in the kind of place that will attract obvious foreigners. All of you, regardless of skin colour, nationality, or ethnicity.
Be safe.
