Ma Jian - Beijing Coma

‘The hunger strikers need to lie down,’ I explained. ‘This isn’t a sit-in, it’s an occupation. We’re going to camp out here until the government agrees to our demands.’

‘We must find some more blankets and quilts,’ Sister Gao mumbled distractedly. ‘I doubt if any of them slept very well.’

I looked over to the psychology students’ camp, but couldn’t spot Tian Yi. I’d checked up on her an hour before. She’d told me that, although she often skipped meals when she was feeling low, now that she was forbidden to eat, her hunger was unbearable. She said it felt as if there were millions of ants scratching at the walls of her stomach.

‘It’s getting very hot now,’ I said. ‘We must shelter the hunger strikers from the sun. I distributed the ten umbrellas we were given this morning, but we’ll need many more. And we’ve run out of water too. Zhuzi and his marshals only managed to bring this one barrel of water. The students finished it in five minutes.’ I tapped the sides of the empty barrel.

Pu Wenhua, a cocky young hunger striker from the Agricultural College, came over and said, ‘The Dialogue Delegation has dared propose to the government that we withdraw from the Square. What right do they have to talk on behalf of the hunger strikers?’ He was only seventeen, apparently, but looked even younger.

‘The dialogue has been under way for two hours now, and the authorities still haven’t broadcast it to us live, as they promised they would,’ Han Dan said to Sister Gao, having just been interviewed by some foreign journalists. He sat down, removed his sunglasses and wiped the sweat from his face. ‘Who else from the hunger strike is at the meeting?’

‘Ke Xi,’ said Sister Gao. ‘He walked into the conference room holding the long banner that says, “I’m hungry, Mum, but I can’t eat.”’

‘Sister Gao, you’re the general secretary of the Beijing Students’ Federation, and you’re opposed to the hunger strike, so it’s probably best if you stay out of this,’ said Bai Ling, crossly waving her limp hands.

‘I was against the hunger strike, but it’s started now, so there’s no point opposing it. Last night, the Federation declared its support. I’ve come here to help you, not to control or criticise you. As it happens, many of the Federation’s members have joined the strike too, so it’s my duty to be here.’

Bai Ling was defiant. ‘The Federation’s role is to liaise between the Beijing universities, so you should return to the campus and get on with your job,’ she said, no longer prepared to be bossed about by her older dorm mate. ‘The hunger strikers are in charge of the Square now. We don’t want to be dictated to by the Federation.’

‘You and Han Dan haven’t eaten for twenty-four hours, Bai Ling,’ Old Fu said. ‘You’re not strong enough to look after the running of the Square. Why not let our Organising Committee or the Federation take over some of the administration?’

‘We don’t need their help,’ Bai Ling said stubbornly. ‘We can run things ourselves perfectly well.’ When she’d arrived in the Square the day before, she’d founded the Hunger Strike Group and appointed herself leader.

Under the bright overhead sun, the hundreds of hunger strikers lying curled up on the Square looked like shrimps laid out to dry. The student marshals stood in cordons around them, keeping curious onlookers away. A hunger striker held up a will he’d written on a sheet of brown paper, and a crowd quickly gathered round to photograph him.

Yu Jin was wearing a checked shirt, with the sleeves rolled up as usual. He hadn’t joined the strike, but had written the words FIGHTING FOR THE PEOPLE! on his baseball cap. I’d appointed him vice head of Beijing University’s student marshal team. He enjoyed running about and making himself useful. A new batch of volunteer student marshals, sent from our campus by Shu Tong, had arrived in the Square, allowing my team a chance to snatch some rest. Even Big Chan, Little Chan and Zhang Jie had turned up to help collect donations.

‘We’ll only leave the Square if the government broadcasts the dialogue to us live, as they promised,’ shouted a student from Nanjing called Lin Lu. He’d arrived in Beijing a few days before. Bai Ling had been impressed by speeches he’d made in the Triangle, and had asked him to help oversee the strike. He’d managed to persuade many students from the provinces to sign up. He seemed very competent.

‘I’ll go back to the United Front Department and check how the dialogue is progressing,’ said Sister Gao. ‘If the officials don’t agree to start the live broadcast immediately, I’ll tell the students to leave the meeting.’

‘I don’t trust you,’ Bai Ling said. ‘Whose side are you really on?’

‘I’m not on anyone’s side. I’m only trying to help. I came here to find out what you want, so that I can pass it on to the Dialogue Delegation.’

‘We’ll get some members of the Hunger Strike Group to accompany you,’ Old Fu said. ‘I’ll set up a public address system. Dai Wei, go and find some hunger strikers to accompany Sister Gao.’

‘We really must sort out the water problem,’ I said. ‘The authorities have cut off our supply. I’ve sent some marshals to buy more bottles of mineral water. But we can’t stay in the Square much longer, Old Fu.’ I was feeling fed up, but I didn’t want Tian Yi to accuse me of not doing my job properly.

‘The Square has divided into little kingdoms, each with its own student marshal team, each claiming to be the true representatives of the students,’ Cao Ming said. ‘The government won’t need to break us up, because we’re doing the job for them.’

I went to give Tian Yi her coat. I was worried about her. Even when she was eating properly, she suffered from hypoglycaemia and would often break out in cold sweats.

Tian Yi and Mimi were leaning against one another. Mimi was fiddling with a strand of Tian Yi’s hair. Her red-checked skirt cast a rosy light into the air around her.

I asked Tian Yi how she was feeling. She said her head was spinning, and she felt she was losing control.

‘You might start hallucinating soon,’ I said. ‘The nurses told me that you shouldn’t be lying so close to each other. If one of you gets an infection, everyone will come down with it.’

‘We’ll be fine. So many local residents have come to the Square to cheer us on. It’s worth going hungry for a few days just to see all this support.’

‘Keep drinking lots of water. If you’re not careful your kidneys could pack up because of your low blood sugar.’ Although it was a swelteringly hot day, her hands were icy.

‘Stop trying to frighten her into giving up,’ Mimi said, wrinkling her brow. ‘We’re prepared to shed blood and sweat for this cause. With so much pressure from the public, the government will be forced to agree to our demands.’

‘ Red dirt smeared across his yellow face, white fear in his black eyes. The west wind blows into the east, singing its sad refrain… ’ A Taiwanese pop song droned from a cassette player. The batteries were running flat.

A hunger striker nearby suddenly passed out. Four marshals ran over, grabbed her arms and pulled her through the crowd. Voices shouted: ‘Get out of their way! Let them through! Don’t drag her like that. Lift her legs up!’

‘Will someone hold the Psychology Department flag up for me?’ Mimi asked. ‘I want to take a nap.’ She appeared to be wearing lipstick.

I took the flag from her and propped it up between two bags, but it wouldn’t stay upright. Cao Ming shouted out, telling me to find Zhang Jie and ask him to accompany Sister Gao to the United Front Department.