Tensions between Chinese migrant workers and Algerian locals have developed into a clash between the two groups, resulting in two Chinese shops being looted and several Chinese workers injured:
A shopkeeper told Reuters that the fight broke out after a disagreement with a Chinese migrant worker.
“I told him not to park his car in front of my shop, but he insulted me,” 31-year-old Abdelkrim Salouda said.
“I punched him, I thought it was over, but after 30 minutes he came back with at least 50 Chinese to take revenge. It is a miracle I am still alive.”
Firms in Africa’s third largest economy say that they depend on Chinese labour – often better qualified and willing to accept lower wages than Algerian workers – to staff the construction sector.
The article estimates that there are 35,000 Chinese migrant workers in Algeria.
