Nine Chinese employees die in attack on Chinese-owned gold mine in Central African Republic

Politics & Current Affairs

Chinese miners are vulnerable as the CAR’s weak government, Russia’s Wagner Group, and a number of rebel groups fight it out for domination of the poor country’s rich mineral resources.

It has not been safe here for years: Rebel fighters in the Central African Republic in 2007. Image via HDTPCAR.

Nine Chinese nationals were killed on Sunday during an attack on a gold mine owned by Gold Coast Group (黄金海岸集团), a Chinese company, in the Central African Republic (CAR). Just a few days ago, three Chinese nationals were kidnapped near the country’s western border with Cameroon, highlighting the CAR’s continued struggles with rebel groups. 

The attack occurred at 5 a.m. after rebels overthrew guards and opened fire on the mine, which had opened just a few days prior. The victims’ bodies have since been transported to the country’s capital, Bangui. There have not been any reports suggesting any CAR nationals were killed.

The Chinese embassy has urged citizens to avoid traveling outside Bangui, and Xí Jìnpíng 习近平 has called for “severe punishment” for those involved. However, the specifics of who orchestrated that attack are still unknown.

Initially, the blame was placed on the Coalition of Patriots for Change (CPC), a rebel group active in the area and known for its attacks on the country’s armed forces. It was formed before the country’s 2020 presidential election in opposition to the current president, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, and is led by former president, François Bozizé, who ran the country from 2003 to 2013 after overthrowing the country’s leadership in a military coup.  

But the CPC released a statement condemning the attack, and instead blamed the Wagner Group, the notorious Russian paramilitary organization that is also active in the CAR. CPC military spokesman Mamadou Koura said that the attack was carried out “with the goal of scaring Chinese who have been present long before the Russians settled in this part of the country.” 

An estimated 1,000 Wagner fighters have been stationed in the Central African Republic since 2018. They have engaged in conflicts across the region over controlling lucrative gold mines in the country. Unlike the CPC, Wagner backs President Touadéra.

While the CPC’s claim was presented without evidence, it points to the complicated dynamic within the impoverished country as a variety of powers vie for control of its wealth of gold, diamonds, and other resources. Rebel groups often go after mining operations run by foreign entities, many of which are now run by Chinese companies.       

This attack is not the first conflict Chinese-owned mines have seen in the Central African Republic. In 2020, two Chinese people died during an uprising against a Chinese-operated mine in the Sosso Nakombo area, near the western border with Cameroon. In 2018 in the same area, angry community members killed three Chinese citizens after a local leader died in a boating accident while taking Chinese miners to a site.

Already President Touadéra is planning a trip to China to reassure investors who are concerned about the CAR government’s struggles to prove its ability to protect Central Africans and foreigners living in the country. 

The Central African Republic’s relationship with China is notable not just because of the many Chinese-owned mining endeavors on its soil but also because of China’s investments. The Chinese government has delivered over $152 million in development assistance to the Central African Republic since 2000.

The Central African Republic has experienced little stability since declaring its independence from France in 1960. There has been an increase in violence since 2020 thanks to conflict between Touadéra and Bozizé over the presidential title, leading to the displacement of over 200,000 people in less than two months. 

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