Nigeria Declares Discrimination Against Its Nationals In China Unacceptable

Nigeria on Tuesday condemned the discrimination against its nationals “unacceptable” after the discovery of several Covid-19 positive cases in the Nigerian community in China and called for “immediate action” from Beijing to put an end to it.

The discovery of these cases created suspicion towards the African community of Canton, the great metropolis of southern China. Several Africans told Nigeria News they were chased from their homes, then refused in hotels.

“There were videos circulating on social networks of very disturbing scenes and incidents involving Nigerians in the city of Canton, China, according to which Nigerians were victims of discrimination and stigmatized as carriers of COVID -19 “Foreign Minister Geoffrey Onyeama told reporters after a hearing with the Chinese ambassador in Abuja.

He said he invited the Chinese ambassador to inform him that “the situation is extremely difficult and unacceptable for the Nigerian government and people and that we want immediate action”.

Met again with H.E. Mr Zhou Pingjian, Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria and addressed the media on the alleged maltreatment of Nigerians in Guangzhou, #China. There was flight which conveyed a group of Nigerians to Guangzhou in which some Nigerians tested positive for #COVID19. pic.twitter.com/Bf3ba4rP3w

— Geoffrey Onyeama (@GeoffreyOnyeama) April 14, 2020

Under strong diplomatic pressure, China rejected Sunday all “racism” and promised “to improve” the treatment of the Africans in Canton.

The African Union had expressed the previous day its “extreme concern” and called on Beijing to “immediate corrective measures”. The United States denounced the “xenophobia of the Chinese authorities”.