The Chinese Embassy in Zimbabwe has come under fire for behaving like a bullies and modern day slave masters after siding with Chinese businesses accused of abusing and exploiting their local employees.
The Embassy released a strongly worded statement accusing local civic society organizations of not appreciating ‘civilization brought Chinese presence in Zimbabwe’.
Last week, 27 civic society organizations who have been consistent in exposing malpractices by Chinese companies operating in Zimbabwe said the firms were displacing hundreds of villagers from chrome fields, gold claims and coal mines in their hunt for Zimbabwe’s mineral resources.
In a statement, the embassy bragged that without Chinese investments, the organisations would not have issued their statement.
“Were it not for China’s funding support and the work of Chinese companies in ICT and power generation, even the statement in question would perhaps have to be scribbled on a piece of paper, in a candle-lit room, and never find its way on a functioning internet.
“What is most sad about the statement is that it ignores the wolf in the room that is truly threatening the lives of local people. That is the sanctions. For many years, Zimbabwean businesses and foreign investors here have had to bear with nightmarish international banking services. The draconian reviews, frustratingly long waits, and real risk of seizure and freeze is far from ideal for minimal business dealings, let alone expansion or growth,” read the statement
China said the statement by civic society organisations were sentiment of an organized political manipulation.
“This concoction of nebulous language slanting against Chinese investments, one-sided arguments, unqualified assertions, and fake stories smells of a recipe frequently used to stir up xenophobic sentiments. This is organized political manipulation,” said the Embassy
Numerous complaints have been raised against Chinese firms operating in the country amid human rights abuses and displacements of locals from their ancestral lands.
