Friday 24 September 2010

China: The New Colonials

fisttap Seeps

This is a short documentary on the tensions between Chinese immigrants and the locals in Dakar, Senegal, from Al-Jazeera. It's worth reading the commentary below as well: 

Response: This programme explores the social friction between the local people and the newly-arrived economic migrants who in my opinion represent the new colonialists - as much as they may bring economic and infrastructural development to Senegal and Africa as a whole, the attitudes towards Africans reflected in this film make me dislike Chinese presence. Yea, I do agree to some extent with Deborah Brautigam's (sorry I can't link Google, The Dragon's Gift) position on the benefits of China-Africa relations, but the Chinese are hustlers and Africans are the hustled. I've read a lot on what China has done in the Congo, Zambia and Tanzania and across the boards it's the same story: the Chinese are exploiters who don't want to integrate, flood the markets with cheap goods and they think poorly of Africans - some 'em even racist like the guy and his friends in the film. Yea I'm generalising but that's not my aim here, it's more to pose a question. Given that the Chinese are the new colonials, how are Africans going to turn around this situation to make it a win-win? If trade with the West means a two-faced exchange, like engaging in agricultural trade but getting ripped off in unfair trade tariffs and being handed aid policies like children and trade with the East means having development but also being a dumping ground for cheap goods killing local production; how do Africans change this up to become meaningful players in the global economy? It's pissing off that people continually come and benefit from us and we're still impoverished, it's pissing off that people can think so poorly of us they can dump poison in our backyards and sell us reject good, but the mother of it all is that our own leaders are so friggin' shortsighted they only see opportunities for instant personal wealth  that they will pimp themselves and the nation out to whoever's willing to pay upfront. It's rubbish really, just rubbish that the Chinese can come a set-up shop in Dakar and trash-talk Africans all they like, no different to White colonials that African nationalists fought a few decades ago. What was it all for? Fanon, Biko, Cabral and Che, what for?

Whenever I see things like this, Bob Marley's Pimper's Paradise is the tune that best describes present-day Africa.

5 comments:

retro girl said...

Wow!! This is very interesting!! I also can't believe that the African leaders let so many of them in the continent like that!! It made me angry watching this video!! Can I use this on my blog if you don't mind?

KonWomyn said...

Hey Triniqueen

You're most welcome to re-post, you can get the embed link at Al-Jazeera. I've cited it above.

Yea I know, it's like the Scramble for Afria all over again only that this time we should be in a position to know better, but we're not. This pro-socialist brotherhood Africans believe they have with the Chinese is only true up to a certain point, but we're not even close to being their business equals.

Thanks 4 commenting.

retro girl said...

Thanks!!! You're right we should know better by now but once again we getting swindled this time by the Chinese who already don't have a great reputation anyway!

Anonymous said...

The attitudes of the Chinese in this video are just disgusting, can't believe people still think like this in 2010. China may be 'revolutionary brothers' and ' friends' of Africa but we are both very ignorant of each other.

They should not be allowed to set up shop if that is how they think!

Nqo

KonWomyn said...

Nqo

"They should not be allowed to set up shop if that is how they think!"

Not allowed by who? The Chinese are capitalists, they have something Africans want and are willing to provide it at a cheaper cost and easier credit terms than The West. Which impoverished nation will refuse that, monkey-talk and all? Didn't you see our good Pan-Africanist brother, Prez Wade giving the Chinese the key, the same Chinese who made that OTT gold statue in Dakar. He's not about to stop the Chinese from coming in, neither is anyone else in power.


My qsn is, how do we Africans step in the market as equals and show Africans aren't to be hustled or messed with? Chinese racist sentiments be damned, I'm 500years tired of being stolen from and being unable to benefit from my own Continent's wealth.