Zimbabwean students who are stranded in China’s coronavirus epicentre Wuhan in particular and other learning institutions have appealed to the government for urgent assistance as they have been on lock-down without basic necessities for several weeks as authorities try to contain the deadly disease.
The severity of the deadly Coronavirus (COVID-19) has left millions of foreigners, especially students, stranded in the eastern economic powerhouse.
The virus has killed more than 3000 people worldwide while infecting more than 88 000 around the globe.
Most Zimbabwean students in China who spoke to 263Chat castigated government’s lackadaisical approach to their needs saying they are now living in squalid conditions as they have run out of critical resources for daily usage.
“The most discouraging thing is that we are the only people who haven’t received any help from their country especially at my school, I’m not sure what the situation is like at other schools,” fumed one student who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Zimbabwe has more than 2000 students studying in China and most of them is affected by the tight restrictive movement measures imposed by Beijing.
Some countries including South Africa, Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Mauritius, Mauritania, Morocco, Seychelles and Tunisia have been evacuating their citizens out of China.
The problem for many countries, particularly those in sub-Saharan Africa has been a lack of financial resources.
Several African nations have been staunch in their refusal to bring nationals home. Inadequate health care systems and imperfect information have been a major factor in fueling this hesitation.
What has worsened the situation is the restrictions on movements by the Chinese Communist government who believe the move will help minimize the risk of the spread of the virus.
However, this has not been well received by most students who say they are now forced to buy expensive commodities as most shop owners are taking advantage of the virus to charge exorbitant prices.
Most students who rely on receiving money from their parents and guardians and receive it via platforms like Western Union have been heavily affected as those platforms are closed, plunging the students into a financial crisis.
“The situation here is bad, to begin with .In as much as they’re trying to protect us it is now so bad given now the scenario that a lot of shops here now are open but they aren’t letting anyone out.
“The school can order or plan a date to take students to the bank but not everyone can have the money at that certain period of time and at my school people are told that they will go to the bank in April and last time they went was in February . How is it fair?” said another student, Rue.
Another student at an unnamed Chinese university said before the virus, they relied on selling merchandise to other students and travelling Zimbabweans and they would subsidize their livelihoods in China.
But since the lock-down, trading has been difficult to come by and their coffers are running dry hence any assistance from the government is urgently needed.
“You see it’s no secret our parents and family members are finding it hard to support us because of various reasons especially the situation at hand in Zimbabwe. In a bid to meet halfway most of us therefore resolved to self-support, the most popular options being teaching English and selling staff like shoes, bags, makeup etc to the people in Zimbabwe at affordable prices.
“Now with this contemporary scathing virus, shipping companies closed meaning we can’t buy and sell, schools closed meaning we can’t work. Only God knows for how long, the apartments we live in for those who don’t live in campus want their rent on time, school fees need to be paid, we need to eat. I think these are the major issues. Of course we are scared to go out buy groceries etc and other minor problems that the government can’t fix for us, at least they could offer financial support,” said the student.
The Chinese government says it is helping the students by providing food stuff and other necessities.
Chinese Deputy Ambassador to Zimbabwe, Zhao Baogang, recently told parents whose children are in China that they are working daily to ensure all students are well catered for.
Baogang reiterated that his Government was committed to assisting any country intending to evacuate its citizens, but warned against such a move.
“If foreign countries are worried about the security of their children and want to evacuate them, we will support them, but for us, the best approach would be to stay where you are.
“If you leave the place that you are at the moment, it will complicate things,” said Baogang.
Other students praised the Chinese government for trying to bring sanity under a tight situation.
“The Chinese government is trying by all means to assist us but maybe they also get overwhelmed…Restrictions are way tighter in Hubei Province so maybe the students in Wuhan and nearby cities like Jingzhou should be prioritized…But we need financial assistance, no matter how much it is, it will go a long way,” said the student.
Universities across China had established hotlines and facilities to provide students with meals as well as basic supplies, including masks and surgical gloves.
