The long road to the east: African immigrants in China.

[Harold Schiffman]

The long road to the east: African immigrants in China.
Tongkeh Fowale

January 3, 2008

The fever of migration that has gripped the African continent for
decades bears a striking relationship with the level of economic and
political deterioration in the continent. Europe (and to a lesser
extent), America continue to wrestle with the problem of African
migration. The plight of African migrants on European Coastal waters
is approaching disaster levels. However, this migratory pattern is
gradually being tilted with the emergence of China as an economic
attraction and new destination for African migrants. Population
movements between Africa and China have increased steadily and
significantly since the 1990s. This South-South movement is motivated
by many factors. China's increasing influence in Africa, encouraging
economic, diplomatic and political Sino-African relations, the Chinese
"economic miracle" and the eventual "English boom" are the most
important factors. The English boom here refers to the quest among
Chinese to learn the English language which is today the language of
globalization, technology and international trade. The English
language is therefore without doubt, the most solid frame on China's
symbolic "window to the west."


China's entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), the upcoming
Beijing Olympics, the popularity of the western culture among the "new
generation" Chinese youths and China's increasing influence in
international affairs are additional reasons for the popularity of the
English language. This quest for English has created vast
opportunities for English speakers in Chinese schools. Africans of
English expression have therefore joined in the queue alongside
Europeans, Americans and Asians to fill the gap. Today, Africans
constitute a large part of the growing international community in
China's towns and cities, big and small. For any meaningful discussion
of African presence and experience in China, it is important to
stratify the migrant population into different categories depending on
their motives for migrating to China.


The first group comprises largely of skilled workers (almost
exclusively) English language instructors. These are drawn mainly from
Anglophone Africa. This group takes up teaching in Chinese schools as
their main occupation. The second group of African migrants consists
of business people. This group, attracted by boundless, opportunities
in China, is drawn from across Africa. Africa constitutes a large
market for Chinese goods which are relatively cheaper than western
goods. Africa also provides important raw materials (including oil and
minerals) to Chinese expanding industries. This bilateral trade is
therefore a stimulant to population movement across both sides, and
therefore accounts for the rising number of African businessmen/women
on Chinese soil.

The third group of African migrants in China is made up of students.
They are attracted by the low-cost educational opportunities China
offers. Many of these students see China either as an alternative to
the west or as a stepping stone. Admittedly, a significant number of
them have either dreamt of, or attempted unsuccessfully to make it to
the west. Very few consider China as a final destination. Still within
the student category are those on government scholarships. These are
beneficiaries of scholarships provided under special agreements
between the Chinese government and their respective governments as pat
of China's Aid program to Africa.

Related to the above group is the set of migrants on
government-related missions. These include government workers on
training or refresher courses in China, soldiers and diplomats or
professionals in diverse fields. Like those of the student category,
their stay in China depends largely on the terms of agreement between
the Chinese government and their respective governments.

The last group of African migrants in China consist of what I will
call "adventurers." They belong to none of the groups listed above.
Their reasons for migrating to China like all others, is to share in
China's economic boom. But their means are dubious and known to none.
This is the group that drags itself, or allows itself to be dragged
into sinister activities of the under world. They take up residence in
China's booming and lucrative cities like Guangzhou, Beijing and
Shanghai. Their preys are businessmen and drug addicts. This group is
the number one problem and target of Chinese security forces. It might
not be very pleasing, but I should say it is because of this group
that Africans are viewed with scepticism (and sometimes disdain) in
several places in China.

Coping with the Challenges

Life in China could be a blessing for some Africans and a curse or
frustration for others. It all depends on which group of migrants (and
in which part of China) one finds himself. However, to understand the
prevailing circumstances of Africans in China, it is important to
weigh their experiences against the situation in their land of
departure. If we admit that many African migrants in China are driven
by the harsh poverty in Africa, if we admit that many of them have
better packages than they could ever get back home, if we admit that
their knowledge and energy would have been wasted had they remained
back home, then we arrive the conclusion that China is a land of
promise for African migrants.

On the other hand, if we admit that African migrants in China are
subjected to several forms of discrimination on the basis of colour
and nationality, if we recount the psychological stress to which
Africans are subjected (from both Chinese and the highly esteemed
"native speakers"), if we consider that the African's intellectual
capability is always an object of doubt, then we can begin to imagine
how much load African migrants carry on their heads and minds in
China.

After several years of sojourn on Chinese soil, the African is yet to
be accepted as a complete human. It is not uncommon for school
children to block their nostrils to avoid the stench from the black
African. School kids flee and take refuge under their desks upon
seeing an approaching black teacher. The African is assumed to have
travelled to China from a jungle without roads, airports or modern
houses, full of monkeys. This jungle is too hot, and that's why
Africans are black. Or Africans are black because they don't bathe.
Fed with TV images, the general conclusion amongst many Chinese is
that Africa is a land of untold hunger, carnage and ceaseless
disasters. This is part of the story that is passed down to Chinese
children about Africans. It is almost becoming a monolithic doctrine
that African migrants are incompetent and unworthy to take up
positions in the four walls of Chinese classrooms. The words of
teachers (both Chinese and white about the lack of competence among
Africans), are gospels truths for students. How does this concern or
affect the African migrants, one may ask?


Many schools in China are run or owned by private individuals. The
quest for English has resulted in the mushrooming of Language Centres
in every imaginable area with a sizeable population. The procedure for
recruitment of teachers into these schools is based largely on the
recommendation of parents and their children and not on ability. This
is where colour comes in. with the high level of prejudice against
Africans; they find it increasingly frustrating to secure such jobs
except perhaps that they have to fall into the inevitable temptation
of switching nationalities overnight. Many Africans become Americans,
British, Canadian or Australian to meet the "nationality conditions"
for employment.

The beginning of prejudice, discrimination and what I may call a
"colour bar" is found in several job adverts. These spell it out
clearly that some jobs are not for Africans. Employers conducting
phone interviews hastily drop when they realise the job seeker is
African. To save time, many of them ask the first question "where are
you from?" Any answer that carries the word Africa means an abrupt end
of the interview. The very polite interviewers end it with the words
"sorry" before dropping.

The very determined Africans who make their way into the classroom
meet another kind of challenge. The Chinese and "native speakers" call
it "heavy accent". When Americans speak with a different accent from
the British or Australians, it is not a problem. But it must be a
problem for Africans. Chinese students with highly conditioned minds
and built-in biases against Africans, struggle to find faults with
their African teachers instead of making the best of them.

Securing a job for Africans could be as difficult as keeping it.
Besides the discriminatory environment in which Africans work, there
is the possibility of instant termination of contracts for reasons
that are imagined or real. Many Africans secure employment only as a
last resort or in situations where employers understand that salaries
are not encouraging enough to attract whites. Even the few Africans on
the same job as whites either have stark differences in salaries and
or at least privileges.


The mother of all problems for African migrants in China is that of
obtaining and or extending work visas. This is where the heavy axe of
China hits hard on the heads of African migrants. The very few lucky
Africans in regular employment escape this ordeal. The vast majority
of others have to buy visas through agents at very exorbitant rates.
When visa conditions become too tight on Africans, many watch
helplessly as their visas expire and join the over-mounting pile of
"sans papiers," (those without papers) the target of the Chinese
police.

The Response of the Chinese Government

In spite of the supposed "excellent" Sino-African relations, many
African migrants in China are still to feel the fruits of this highly
trumpeted friendship. The exception here are those on government
related missions, and students on government scholarships. The rest
simply consider themselves as wonderers seeking a source of living for
themselves and their families.

However, to assess the attitude of the Chinese government towards
Africans, one big question begs for an answer. How does a government
with the world's largest population on its head, provide living space
for an ever increasing wave of migrants from Africa, Europe, America
and other parts of the world? Adding this to the problem of internal
migration, one easily finds truth in the observation that "China faces
massive internal pressures from the biggest migration in human history
as people flock the poor west to the rapidly developing east, and from
country to city."

Another hard reality worth considering is the vastness of the country
and the autonomous nature of the regions and provinces. The laws in
China are as vast as the size of the country. Visa policies therefore
differ from province to province. Here therefore we should
differentiate between the "anti-African" or "Afro-phobic" provinces
and the Afro-friendly ones. The Afro-friendly provinces readily
accommodate Africans in a friendly and brotherly spirit. On the other
hand, one sees a rising Afro-phobic spirit in certain parts of China.
It is a near impossibility for Africans to obtain work visas in these
provinces especially as teachers.

At the state level, there have been heated and consistent debates on
state television (CCTV 9) as to the relevance of Africans in the
teaching of English. The overwhelming verdict has always weighed to
the disfavour of Africans. This press hostility towards African
migrant workers in China is another influence and pointer to the
rising disdain for Africans.

However, debates on national TV and practical realities on the ground
are two contrasting extremes. Based on this observation, barriers
created around and against Africans in China are beginning to break
and fall off in pieces. The traditional job adverts that restricted
Africans from certain jobs are beginning to read "mostly or only
Africans wanted". Others target specific African countries. This
change of attitude without doubt is based on the tested and proven
abilities of African migrant workers in China.

When African leaders meet in international conferences and pronounce
highly on their "Look East" policy with China as mentor, they should
make space in their speeches for the thousands of Africans wandering
in the Chinese wilderness. Like wise, when Chinese diplomats talk of
friendly ties with Africa, they should take two things into
consideration. The first is the plight of African migrants on their
doorsteps. Secondly, they should consider that Africa is home to
millions of Chinese migrants involved in activities that range from
oil and mineral exploration, through farming to street hawking and
peddling. The services of African migrants are as important to both
economies as the oil and mineral trade that binds Africa and China.

For useful lessons on the issue of migration, both sides should listen
to Jose Manuel Barroso, Europe's top civil servant who has these words
to say. "We cannot, we will not stop migration. Migration should be a
source of prosperity for both the country of origin and the country of
destination, not a human tragedy."

http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=47741

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