From Mali to Madagascar, Kenya to Zambia, Niger to Uganda, Chinese investors and labourers have infiltrated the continent. In some of the countries, their actions have been lauded but in others loathed, as Sunday Monitor Correspondents Janet Otieno, Jonstone Ole Turana, Saudah Mayanja & Caesar Abangirah narrate:-

Africa has witnessed an influx of Chinese investors and labourers in recent years. So important has the continent become in the eyes of the Asian country that Beijing has adopted the softer approach of ‘not interfering in the continent’s political affairs’ to justify her economic pursuits.

However, the Chinese have been accused of not being any better than Africa’s former colonial masters when it comes to their labour practices. A few weeks ago, Chinese mine managers shot and wounded 13 of their employees in southern Zambia over a pay dispute, sparking a countrywide outrage in the southern African nation.

And this is not just the first incident in the country. A few months ago, local workers at a Chinese-owned copper mine went on strike demanding better working conditions. The strike turned into a riot, and reports indicate that the mine’s Chinese manager fired into the crowd, injuring several people in the process. More episodes on the continent capture the increasingly icy Afro-Chinese labour relations.

A year ago in Mozambique, an argument broke out between a provincial governor, Mr Mauricio Vieira, and the China Henan International Cooperation Group (Chico). After winning a contract to build a new water supply system to service the capital Maputo and other surrounding towns, the firm had barely begun work when complaints from local workers about poor treatment at the hands of the Chinese bosses surfaced.

The worst reported indignity — of workers wearing badges bearing the word Escravo (Slave) — turned out to be a case, apparently, of mistranslation. However, unwittingly, those badges have turned prophetic of the nature of labour relations between Chinese enterprises in Africa and their employees. From Mali to Madagascar, Kenya to Zambia, workers’ restiveness abounds.

In Niger, the local Tuareg community dubbed the SOMINA mining operation Guantanamo, whereas in Namibia, on taking issue with their ill treatment, workers were told to “suffer now so that future generations can enjoy”.

In 2008, a Kenyan community blocked road construction works demanding that they be provided with water for domestic use and for their livestock. This was at the height of a severe drought, and the Chinese contractor had denied the community access to the only borehole with water around.

In Niger and Zambia, workers live too close to uranium pits and work without any protective gear, exposing them to hazardous substances. Resentment toward the Chinese practice of importing labour from Asia is increasingly visible.

Many African countries have high levels of unemployment and want the Chinese-run firms to hire more local workers. The firms have been accused of taking away local jobs while robbing the continent of its natural resources, violating labour laws and fuelling corruption.

In February, the National Union of Mine Workers organised a protest in South Africa following a government decision to award special visas to 50 unskilled Chinese labourers, who were to construct new premises for the Chinese consulate in Cape Town.

In Kenya, like in Uganda, where a number of Chinese firms are constructing major roads, the expectation was that they would involve local labour. However, the preference to use machines has led to discontent, putting the government labour-intensive programme in the spotlight.

In Uganda, China has invested heavily in road construction, trade, manufacturing, ICT and Agriculture. And while their most notable constructions are the Mandela National Stadium, Foreign Affairs and President’s offices, Chinese have occupied many shops in the country selling mechanical and electrical appliances, enamel products, footwear, pharmaceuticals, textiles and garments.

Brewed hatred
There are around 70,000 Chinese living in Angola. This high (and growing) number has brewed hatred among the locals, leading to violent attacks that range from robberies to kidnappings. Some see this trend as a means of the locals getting revenge for discriminative labour practices, while, to others, the Chinese are simply easy prey because of their presumed affluence.

Three years ago in Ethiopia, nine Chinese oil workers were killed and seven of their colleagues kidnapped by the separatist Ogaden National Liberation Front.
In Botswana, grievances in the construction sector are at the forefront of public debate. More recently, four Chinese were arrested after they assaulted their Batswana colleagues working on the Francistown Stadium construction project. The Africans earned themselves the beatings after revealing their miserable working conditions to some visiting parliamentarians.

On various manufacturing and construction projects, Asian and African employees have different pay structures. Most African workers are undocumented and treated as casual employees, thus depriving them of corporate benefits like insurance, allowances and paid vacations.

The availability of labour has emboldened the Chinese firms to disengage fidgety workers and hire new labourers. Local businesses have also voiced their concern over the refusal by Chinese firms to use locally available materials in their projects.

In Uganda, according to Kampala City Traders Association spokesperson Issa Sekito, most Chinese in the country register as investors only to end up as petty traders. “The Investment Code has been violated to allow them do petty trade and when they make the money, it is taken back to China,” he said.

Source: http://www.monitor.co.ug