BULAWAYO – A Chinese miner appeared in court in Bulawayo on Tuesday accused of attacking two of his workers, one of them with a shovel, after they demanded outstanding wages.
Zhong Zhongyi, 60, a director of Fools Investments which is mining in Hope Fountain, east of Bulawayo, was not asked to plead to two counts of assault as he was released on Z$3,000 bail.
Magistrate Shepherd Mjanja remanded him out of custody to February 24 after the National Prosecuting Authority did not oppose bail.
The alleged assault on January 16 was captured on video and drew anger among Zimbabweans on social media. It would be the latest of growing abuses of locals by Chinese employers, usually at mines where the government has granted them generous concessions.
The Chinese embassy on Monday said it “supports a fair and transparent handling of all violations of law by the Zimbabwean authorities, regardless of who is involved,” but cautioned that “it is wrong and dangerous to hold the entire Chinese community responsible for what happens in this unclear incident.”
Prosecutor Nkathazo Dlodlo said Zhongyi flew into a rage during a meeting called by workers to demand outstanding salaries from last year.
He is accused of indiscriminately punching Costan Mhasa several times before he was restrained.
Zhongyi, it is alleged, then armed himself with a shovel which he used to strike Mhasa once on the arm.
“After assaulting Mhasa, the accused also turned on Mangena and struck him twice with a shovel on his left arm,” said Dlodlo.
On Tuesday, 14 civic organisations petitioned the Zimbabwe Human Rights Commission, the Gender Commission and the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission for an “urgent investigation and action into the abuse of local Zimbabwean mine workers by Chinese mining companies.”
