The youths who attacked a Chinese national must face the full wrath of the law, their conduct is unZambian
THE video circulating on social media in which a Chinese national is being mobbed and assaulted by some Zambian workers is deeply disturbing. It is the kind of barbaric conduct that must be condemned without hesitation, without justification and without any attempt to excuse it. Whatever grievance those workers may have had against a man who appeared to be their supervisor, there is no wrong that justifies people taking the law into their own hands. Zambia is a country of laws. We cannot allow workplaces to become battlefields where disagreement is resolved through fists and kicks.
According to the Zambia Police Service, the incident happened at AVIC International Camp Site along the Mufulira–Mokambo Road, where the victim, Shao Hong, a Chinese national and supervisor on the project, was attacked after he followed up on tipper truck drivers who had reported late for work and allegedly attempted to administer breathalyser tests on those suspected of having consumed alcohol. One suspect, Wana Chambalu, has since been arrested for Assault Occasioning Actual Bodily Harm. We commend the police for moving swiftly. This is the kind of matter that must not be handled casually because it carries consequences beyond the immediate injury suffered by the victim.
That behaviour is not Zambian. We are not a people who gang up on a foreigner and beat him because we are unhappy with instructions at work. We are not a people who treat violence as a language of negotiation. We are not a people who assault a supervisor because we disagree with workplace discipline. If there are labour violations, if workers are being abused, underpaid, insulted, overworked or mistreated by any investor or foreign supervisor, there are lawful channels through which such complaints can be raised. Workers can report to the Ministry of Labour. They can involve unions. They can seek police protection where threats arise. They can petition relevant authorities. What they cannot do is mob and assault another human being.
This is particularly important because workplace frustrations are real in Zambia. We know that some investors, including some foreign supervisors, have in the past treated Zambian workers badly. We have written many times about labour abuse, poor wages, unsafe conditions and disrespectful treatment of workers. But the answer to abuse cannot be criminality. The answer to exploitation cannot be mob justice. If workers respond to suspected wrongdoing through violence, they weaken their own case. They move from being complainants to offenders. They give the law no option but to deal with them as criminals.
We must also be careful not to allow anti-foreign resentment to take root in our country. Zambia must never copy the shameful culture of xenophobic attacks that we have seen in South Africa, where foreign nationals become easy targets for anger, unemployment and frustration. That is not the Zambia we want. We cannot build a nation where our youths begin to think that Chinese nationals, Indians, Rwandans, Congolese, Zimbabweans, Nigerians or any other foreigners are fair targets whenever there is a dispute. Once that seed is planted, it becomes very difficult to uproot.
China is particularly important to Zambia. Our relationship with China has played a major role in infrastructure development, trade, mining, construction, financing and employment. We may disagree with certain terms of engagement. We may question some investors’ conduct. We may demand better labour standards. We may insist that Chinese companies respect Zambian laws. But we must not confuse legitimate accountability with hatred against Chinese people. Our Chinese brothers and sisters who live and work among us deserve the same protection of the law that we demand for ourselves.
Such actions send a very wrong message to would-be investors. No serious investor wants to take money into a country where workers can assault a supervisor and expect public sympathy. Investment follows confidence. Confidence follows order. Order follows law enforcement. If Zambia gains a reputation as a place where workplace discipline can trigger violence against foreign nationals, we shall all pay the price through lost jobs, delayed projects and reduced investment appetite.
The police must therefore ensure that those responsible face the full wrath of the law. Let this case be handled properly and transparently. Let the courts determine guilt based on evidence. But if those captured in that video are found guilty, they must be punished in a manner that sends a clear message: taking the law into your own hands has consequences. Mob justice must never be tolerated. At the same time, employers must learn from this incident. Workplace discipline must be enforced firmly but respectfully.
Zambia must protect workers, but Zambia must also protect investors, supervisors and foreign nationals from criminal attacks. We must remain a civilised nation where disputes are resolved through institutions, not fists. What happened in Mufulira was shameful, barbaric and unZambian. It must never be repeated.
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