During the weekend I received a number of text messages from students at Jiujiang college. The first arrived late Friday evening and spoke of a mob of male students surrounding one of the female dormitory blocks. This was not a prank or a bit of fun as the doorkeeper was threatened and the boys intended to “violate us”, in words taken from a text message. As more messages came during the night it became apparent there was a riot in progress. My co-teacher from the Civil Engineering Department contacted me the next morning with further news as her dormitory block had also been attacked, but unsuccessfully.
More news arrived from Johnny Ray, an American teacher at JJ who I had met while there. During the night the main entrance to the Bai Gong [White House] had been broken down and two vehicles parked outside – not far from the balcony outside 301, where he now lives with Ruby his wife – were burnt. The PLA had arrived in the morning and were now patrolling the grounds.
