Wen JiaBao at Beida

Yesterday morning I got a message from a friend at Peking University (Beida) saying that the premier Wen JiaBao was outside her dormitory. I rushed there and got a glimpse of the man just before he entered a mini-bus and went on. He had been addressing the students that had been sitting in the NongYuan canteen. I think they must have been very surprised when he came in. Students around was not aware what was going on and there were only some hundred or so students that waved him goodbye.


Wen Jiabao had already had just waved the students goodbye and entered this mini-bus when I took this picture. I just managed to see him a couple of seconds.

The students I saw was just as surprised as me. As far as I know this was a completely unannounced visit, probably to try to deter students from marching. As far as I know this must be very rare for a top official to make such a visit.

May 4th is a very symbolic date in Chinese history and there has been a lot of rumors about anti-Japanese protests erupting again against the will of the government.

Update (7 May): Scott mailed me the article in People's daily

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao paid a visit Wednesday to Peking University, one of the most prestigious universities in China, celebrating the Chinese Youth Day with the students.

The premier arrived on the campus at about 10:00 a.m. Wednesday. He visited the university's library and dormitory areas and received the warmest welcome from all the students and staff members.

During his talks with the students, Wen listened carefully to their questions and difficulties and made sincere and humorous replies, which aroused applauds one time after another.

In his talks, the premier asked the students to be conscientious and persevering in their studies so as to make contributions to the building of the country after graduation.

"I feel exciting to have a face-to-face talk with the premier. His concerns and expectations toward us make me feel warm as well as the sense of responsibilities," said a student named Zhang Qiulei.

As expected. Everyone is happy in People's Daily's Chinese wonderland.

By the way, Jiabao is MY name!