PAY-DEMANDING MINE WORKER GETS GUN TO HEAD!

A video of a Chinese mine manager threatening to shoot a Zimbabwean worker who was demanding his unpaid wages has reignited the debate over foreign investors' treatment of African workers.

Liu Haifeng, a manager at Ming Chang Sino-Africa Mining Investments, is seen pointing a pistol at the worker, who has since been identified as 38-year-old Kholwani Dube, who allegedly threatened the manager over $600 of unpaid salary. In the video, Dube shouts at him to pay up.

Later in the video, Chinese nationals are seen pinning Dube to the ground while one of them is pointing a gun at his head.

Criminal charges have been filed against both Dube and Haifeng. According to police, Dube is accused of attacking his manager with a knife, while Haifeng has been charged with pointing a firearm.

The video has triggered angry reactions, with many saying that it is a testament to the abuse and poor working conditions that African workers are subjected to at the hands of Chinese investors.

While China has emerged as a reliable development and investment partner for many African countries, Chinese investors into the continent have faced numerous allegations of poor labour practices, ranging from very low wages and long working hours to physical abuse of workers.

In 2020, Zhang Xuelin, a manager at a Chinese-run gold mine, was arrested for shooting and wounding two Zimbabwean workers after they protested over delayed wages.

In 2021, a Malawian worker testified before a Johannesburg court that he had been physically assaulted by his Chinese boss at a factory in the South African commercial capital.

Sources:

https://x.com/advocatemahere/status/1882406413940805830

https://www.hrw.org/news/2011/11/03/zambia-workers-detail-abuse-chinese-owned-mines

https://x.com/PoliceZimbabwe

https://chinaglobalsouth.com/2022/05/26/a-chinese-appeal-for-compatriots-not-to-abuse-local-workers-in-africa/

https://www.scmp.com/news/world/africa/article/3091300/chinese-mine-companies-zimbabwe-accused-rampant-abuse-after-boss

https://www.labour.gov.za/workers-in-the-chinese-factory-we-assaulted-by-the-employers-a-witness-told-the-johannesburg-high-court

https://www.labour.gov.za/workers-in-the-chinese-factory-we-assaulted-by-the-employers-a-witness-told-the-johannesburg-high-court