The mainstream Western media and their elites are claiming that China is exploiting African countries and are in fact in the process of a new economic colonization of Africa. Is there any truth to this claim?
First of all, let’s discuss the Western mode of helping developing countries. It is mainly done through the use of The World Bank and IMF, using a set of rules or economic reform policy that is widely called the Washington Consensus. Countries that need to borrow money have to abide by the conditions of the Washington Consensus. The policy favors private investment, particularly cross-national Western investors, bankers and the local lackeys. It sets conditions on how respective governments are allowed to spend public fund and overall favor privatization of utilities etc. It also requires developing countries establish a West approved political structure and process ( a copy of the Western liberal democratic model), without regards to the actual conditions.
Problem is the prescriptions of the Washington Consensus is based on the developmental history of Western nations over several hundred years. Applying the prescription to other countries with different background and history is just downright disastrous. The success of the liberal democratic model in the West is possible due to having a well-developed economy. It’s not the other way round.
Some people may say that the West meant well in implementing the disastrous set of policy. But it is also acting to safeguard its own interest. The economic liberalization policy makes it easy for Western investors to make money or reap profits thereafter from such countries.
China does not impose such conditions and neither directly interfere in the country’s politics. How would China colonizes when it just want to do business or built infrastructure? If African do not welcome the Chinese or renege on their debts, they would leave. It’s simple as that. With the West, it’s different. They will support one rebel faction against the government side or vice versa, and may even bring in their own soldiers if things get out of control. African leaders also run the risk of being prosecuted by the International Court of Justice, which has already issued arrest warrants for several African leaders.
The use of terms like ‘debt trap’ and ‘new colonization’ by the Western media is nothing but the use of the emotive words to disseminate propaganda against a rising China.
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