Austin Arensberg, on a daily walk in Beijing strolled past a suicidal man on a ledge.

Today as I walked to go do a chore I noticed a crowd near one of the buildings in the Hua Qing Jia Yuan apartment complex in Wudaokou a university area in Beijing where I have lived for the past two months. As I approached the crowd I noticed many security guards hurriedly telling people to move back. Everyone was looking up.

When I glanced in the same direction I noticed a person on the top of one of the 18 story high buildings. He was suicidal. Everyone around me was staring. Many were laughing, some were taking pictures. The mood on the ground was almost jovial, as if this was something that was a fun distraction. I honestly felt that as I stood there.

I was faced almost immediately with a moral dilemna. Do I stand here and watch to see the man either jump and certainly die, or get saved by the police that were rushing to his aid. Or do I walk away shaking my head in disbelief and sadness. Or do I try and help.

I knew that I was no help. People were already in motion, and minutes later I could see that he was talking to someone on the roof. And after awhile just trying to soak in what was going on I left, sickened at the thought of watching him jump.

While Austin is naturally feeling shaken by the experience, his behavior was much better than that of another expat in a similar incident in Shanghai.

Technorati Tags: asia, china, northeast asia