Growing Protests In Zambians Over The Country's Debts To China

Zambia's President Edgar Lungu shakes hands with China's President Xi Jinping before their bilateral meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China September 1, 2018. Image: Nicolas Asfouri/Pool via REUTERS

Jonathan W. Rosen, WPR: ‘China Must Be Stopped’: Zambia Debates the Threat of ‘Debt-Trap’ Diplomacy

LUSAKA, Zambia—Sitting in the lobby of a Lusaka hotel last month, James Lukuku was feeling energized.

The leader of Zambia’s Republican Progressive Party, a fringe opposition group, Lukuku had gained notoriety in recent months as one of the most outspoken critics of Zambia’s relationship with China—a bond he and others say is characterized by increasingly reckless borrowing that puts Zambia’s sovereignty at risk. The 37-year-old made headlines in September when he staged a one-man protest in Lusaka, the capital, holding a sign that equated China to Hitler while wearing a T-shirt with the words “Donald Trump Help” scrawled in red and black magic marker.

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WNU Editor: Zambia's debts (and about 30 other African nations) were wiped out over a decade ago by a program called the "Heavily Indebted Poor Countries and Multilateral Debt Relief initiatives". And now Zambia along with many other African countries are hopelessly in the red again .... and primarily to the Chinese. But unlike the Western banking community backed by Western governments that forgave these debts a decade ago, the Chinese are not going to forgive these debts. They will take they want, and (I predict) at a huge discount. This blog has mentioned more than once on the dangers of foreign governments getting into debt with the Chinese. In the beginning it is tempting, but with time they will own everything and will dictate your government's policies. It is unfortunate, but Africa and other countries around the world are learning this hard lesson now.