African residents of Guangzhou, southern China, reportedly found themselves sleeping on the street this week as renters arbitrarily evicted them, hotels banned them, and restaurants refused to serve them food.
The Africans – many businessmen, students, and others from places like Nigeria, Kenya, and Zimbabwe – say they are also being subject to arbitrary coronavirus testing and still shunned when they test negative. Many have spent years in China without leaving, unlike their Chinese neighbors, making the Communist Party’s explanation that travelers from abroad require more isolation and testing to prevent “imported” cases of Chinese coronavirus not applicable.
The Chinese coronavirus, currently behind a pandemic sweeping through most of the world, has had a markedly more muted effect in sub-Saharan Africa than other places, though some speculate this to be a product of many countries in the region having insufficient access to testing. In contrast, China is the origin country of the virus and its government actively silenced medical professionals sharing hygiene tips for months, enabling the spread of the virus to such a degree that one study found the Communist Party responsible for as many as 95 percent of the world’s coronavirus cases.