Africa-Press – Namibia. Placido Hilukilwa THE overwhelming majority of Namibians in the rural areas now depend on the Chinese retail shops, so much so that closing such outlets would disrupt many people’s way of life.
Of late, there has been a wave of demonstrations by activists demanding the closure of Chinese businesses for the alleged mistreatment of workers and an apparent disregard of Namibian laws.
Informanté took to the streets to gauge the views of “the man and woman on the street” and also to hear from the Chinese employees. There is a unanimous rejection of the suggestion, by some activists, that Chinese retail shops be closed down.
“Such a closure would only turn our lives upside down. Chinese goods are of low quality but they are cheap, therefore affordable to us,” said Amon Sheuya, a resident of the Uupindi location of Oshakati.
He added: “A life without Chinese shops would be like a life without cellphones: in other words, such a life is no longer possible.” Sheyavali Linus, a street vendor and resident of the Okandjengedi location, agrees.
“That is because of the Chinese we are able to make a living. We buy bulk from the Chinese shops and go re-sell in the rural villages. The profit margin is small but enough to put bread on the table,” he said.
He further said that the Chinese retail shops have significantly improved people’s lives. The suggestion of closing Chinese shops is equally rejected by those employed by the Chinese, for understandable reasons: they would lose their jobs.
“We are treated badly and paid starvation wages, but closing the shops would only aggravate the situation and add to the already high unemployment rate,” said a female employee on condition of anonymity.
“What must be done is: the Chinese must change. They must treat employees as fellow human beings. The police must make sure that the Chinese abide by the laws of the country,” said another employee.
The situation was the same in all shops visited by Informanté: each worker earns less than N$1 000 per month; no contribution to the Social Security Commission and no annual leave. Employees work non stop from 08:00 to 17:00 without a lunch break and are only given one off day every second week.
“We are allowed to go see a medical doctor, but no sick leave. It is not even easy to get compassionate leave, let alone leave to attend to other matters, such as a friend’s or relative’s wedding for instance.”
Erwin Amunyela, an Oshakati-based trade unionist, supports the idea of closing down Chinese retail shops. He said that, as foreign investors, the Chinese must be limited to manufacturing and bulk supply, leaving the retail sector for Namibians only.
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