The government of the Central African Republic has halted the operations of a Chinese mining company in the country, accusing the company of collaborating with anti-government militias.
The Ministry of Mines of the Central African Republic, in a decree issued last Saturday (June 8th), accused Daqing SARL, a company engaged in gold and diamond mining, of “conducting intelligence activities with armed groups, illegal mining, illegally bringing foreigners into mining areas, failure to pay taxes, and lack of activity reports.”
Daqing SARL operates in the town of Mingala in the southern part of the Central African Republic, where clashes between the Central African Armed Forces and the anti-government militia “Coalition of Patriots for Change” have been ongoing.
Since 2013, the Central African Republic has been embroiled in conflict when predominantly Muslim rebel groups took power, forcing President Francois Bozize to step down. Christian militias launched counter-attacks.
The peace agreement reached in 2019 only partially eased the conflict, with six out of the 14 armed groups that signed the agreement later withdrawing. The Coalition of Patriots for Change was established in 2020.
Despite having abundant mineral resources such as gold and diamonds, the Central African Republic remains one of the poorest countries in the world. Over the past decade, rebel groups have operated with impunity in this volatile country, hindering foreign companies from conducting mining exploration.
Many companies currently operating in the Central African Republic are run by Chinese nationals, with occasional deadly attacks taking place.
Last month, a Chinese-operated gold mine was attacked, resulting in the deaths of four workers, with the local government attributing the attack to the Coalition of Patriots for Change. In the past year, nine Chinese citizens were killed in another gold mine in the Central African Republic. The government also blames the same rebel alliance for this attack.
In 2020, local residents staged a riot targeting a Chinese-owned mine in the southern part of the Central African Republic, resulting in the deaths of two Chinese citizens.
(Adapted from related reports by the Associated Press)