Chinese capitalists vs African workers

Contributed by Ying Jiang

A recent New York Times report on a shooting incident at a Chinese-owned Zambian coal mine, Collum Coal, reveals a glimpse of Western impression of Chinese dealings with some of the African governments. In this incident, mine workers who are dissatisfied with wages and erratic work schedules demonstrated their anger by crowding a closed mine shaft, resulting in gun shots from supervisors in (apparently) self-defensive actions. Aside from wage issues, work place safety is also a prime concern.

While the mine-owners denied any wrong of their own, it has become a more common sentiment among Zambians that foreign companies such as Collum Coal exploit and abuse, rather than help and develop, their host country, often protected by a corrupt government. In this case, the words of the Zambian president Rupiah Banda, in an attempt to state that it's unfair to single out the Chinese (foreign companies), sounded absolutely ridiculous. On the other hand, the Times tries to balance its report by incorporating a somewhat humane, West-acceptable response from the Chinese Embassy.

It is ironic that China, a nation which sometimes still wallow in a self-image of the exploited and plundered for its early 20th century encounters with Western powers, has to role-play the exploiter towards countries down the ladder of development. Does this say anything about the evolution of capitalism?

Source: NYtimes