By Francis Ogwo
Africans living in China have alleged harrasments and racist treatments by authorities.
Several evidences have emerged from different quarters raising fears on the safety of blacks there.
Kaftan China Correspondent,YanDan Zheng reported that there is an outrage against some Nigerians in China who defied rules on the COVID 19 control and lived their normal lives even as positive carriers.
” It was the five Nigerians who had known they are confirmed cases, They were in quarantine , but left their homes without permission to eat in restaurants severally.
” They infected the people in the restaurants and some shops . Some of them had expired Chinese visas while some had destroyed their passports.They lived illegally in China and wanted to escape , so the Chinese police chased them and contacted the embassy, this happened In Yuexiu District in Guangzhou China.
“Before now ,there were no virus cases in Guangzhou but because of the five people, more than 1000 people they had contact with were quarantined and that area will be on lockdown”YanDan added.
Speaking further he said the incidence was made worse and dicey for the Chinese authorities as the alleged confirmed Nigerian carriers were illegal immigrants.
” I live in Guangzhou now . The news was a shock to the whole of China. Even after knowing their statuses as confirmed cases , five of them began to deliberately spread the virus , also they stayed illegally, so the China Immigration administration is dealing with it”said YanDan.
The reports from Yan Dan further revealed that there are many Africans staying illegally in Guangzhou who have had issues with Chinese authorities severally.
“Many Africans tear up passports for illegal residence in China .This led to China proposing to the Nigerian Embassy to help repatriate the illegal immigrants .China offered to pay for their flight tickets and other expenses after returning to Africa. Nigeria refused and said it would establish a Nigerian city in China .As of 2015, the number of illegal Africans in Guangzhou had indeed exceeded 200,000 , and only 14000 African people live legally now”.
Investigations revealed that there have been a cat and mouth chase between ‘illegal’ immigrants and Chinese authorities.This was YanDan’s response in which he pointed out as a factor making the issuing of Chinese visas to Africans more difficult.
“Due to the problem of tearing up passports or marrying Chinese girls, Guangzhou Public Security Bureau has a great problem of repatriation, so there is difficulty in securing Chinese visa now by Africans” he opined.
While Immigration problems are well known with every country having their own chunks of the cake.It is a fact that there are lots of Chinese who have visibly overstayed in Africa too, maybe not as much as Africans overstay in China. Many would wonder how the Chinese government ensures that innocent immigrants who are not positive are not wrongly targeted.
On this YanDan said, “They are illegal residents, disobedient to Chinese laws and narrowly escaped repatriation by Chinese police on many occasions, so they seize the opportunity to complain and retaliate.
“In China’s laws, as long as one abides by it is welcomed by the people , but in violation of the law and discipline, we usually resist, not only to Africans but also to other nationals.
A video was taken by our sources showing a group of Nigerians in a heated argument with a Chinese official.The spokesperson of the group whose identity was not confirmed at the time of filling this report but assumed to be an official of the Nigerian Embassy argued that the International standard since COVID-19 at was to subject a visitor into a country for 14 days but wondered why Nigerians where given extra 14 days.
In a faceoff manner, he (the Nigerian spokesperson) challenged the Chinese official who was said to be a Director at the Embassy on why they should be partial in the enforcement of the lockdown rule targeting at blacks instead of the general public .
Kaftan Post East Africa Bureau Chief, Anne Okello in a related response had a chat with James ( real names withheld) a Kenyan based in China recounts their ordeal under Chinese authorities.
“Over the past two days police have been knocking on our doors , demanding for our passports and information then later forcing us to take nucleic tests to test the covid 19 .This is being done without any official report from the Kenyan Embassy or even Chinese media.After the test no document is given to show that you have done the test and turned negative they just said that in 3 days if it’s negative they won’t call, if positive they will call and come for you .Now they say that there is a new outbreak in Guangzhou and mostly blacks have been infected . It has become a foreign epidemic and we are being discriminated here like never before as black people.
” We cannot take buses,trains,can’t access malls ,hospitals etc now they term us as carriers of the virus ,as I am speaking there are some Kenyans who are homeless ejected by their landlords for not paying rent.Remember we have not been working since January and no salaries ,some are being refunded their deposit and told to leave as no black people are allowed in the apartments with others sleeping hungry currently”.
“There is a woman at the Kenyan Embassy office In Beijing stranded as she has been sleeping outside the gate with no food .It has been raining and cold here at the moment and she was told that they can offer her no help that she needs to go back to where she came from or go report to the police.We are wondering what the function of the Embassy here is as they never speak out even after they see all what is being done to us”
“In our own country,Kenya, Chinese are maltreating our people working for them and even some beating us .Some are even working illegally but try that in China you might even get killed”
“We have tried to get help from our mheshimiwas but seems none is forthcoming .We are tired but we can’t go home,no flights at the moment.We are bringing it public so that people know what we facing here”,James lamented.
The story is not different from this one by a Ugandan immigrant Sandy( not real names) on a live TV show who accused Chinese of racist behavior.
” We are passing through difficult times in China.We cannot board same buses with Chinese as blacks.They would drop down when the notice we Africans are in the bus.
“We cannot also use the supermarkets with them or hotels.When they check your passports and find out you are African they chase you away.If you protest and call the police they would harrass you . Most of our people have been rendered homeless by these Chinese.They just come to a house rented by an African and quit the person.The entire population not Ugandan here have been passing through hell in the hands of these Chinese”,she lamented.
According to Sandy, she has made contacts with the Ugandan government through the ambassador to help evacuate them but was told that the government hasn’t made any arrangements that they have only the option of self help which Sandy says has eluded them with majority of her fellow Ugandans under forced quarantine.
She said they were left with no option than to seek for amnesty from the Chinese amnesty which comes with a fine of about 3000-5000 RMB.
“There was an earlier requirement for all foreigners to undergo corona virus test.I complied and today my results came back negative.
“This evening my landlord sends me a message that local community is not comfortable with foreigners walking around.
This chat with our corespondents corroborated the claims by Sandy on the level of racist harrasments as alleged by Africans in China especially on the compulsory quarantine of blacks.
“I responded and she accepted my position on that.Then at midnight a policeman and local community official were at my door that I needed to stay indoors in quarantine for 14 days.Just me,not my neighbors who are Chinese nor anyone else in my compound”
While the accusations and counter accusations dangling like a pendulum between illegal residency and COVID 19 spread, many would wonder the future of China-African relationship with the rate at which the diplomatic ties are cracking.
That is it..what else when Africans worship China! Everywhere you turn your eyes is China in Africa in Abuja..construction of a Fives Miles Road is China. While, Nigeria is busy giving their impostors Engineers as Doctors, royal welcome, they are busy hating blacks for a disease they created. Now the embassies can’t even their helpless citizens to safety in the eyes of this evil. What a contradiction.