Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi told African Union Commission chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat in a phone call that the issues would be addressed after the reports became subject of an unprecedented diplomatic row between some African countries and China.

“He [Wang] reassured me of measures underway in #Guangzhou to improve the situation of Africans, in line with the strong and brotherly partnership between #Africa and #China,” Mahamat tweeted yesterday (Monday 13 April). He said the AU’s permanent representative and the African group of ambassadors in Beijing and Guangzhou are following the implementation of these measures. “I thanked Minister #WangYi for the quick action and the support of China to Africa in the fight against #COVID19.”

A number of social media posts went viral on Thursday with pictures and videos showing young Africans living in Guangzhou being forced to leave their homes and hotels, with some having to find shelter out on the streets.

This happened in the city’s Yuexiu district, also known as “Little Africa”, home to the largest African diaspora population in China. Many African traders fly there to buy cheap goods to sell at home, although there have also been reports of people overstaying their visas to work in the city.

Shortly before, there were reports in Chinese media that a Nigerian man with coronavirus bit a nurse’s face to flee from a hospital where he was receiving treatment and being kept in isolation. Another restaurant also was forced to close down for investigations as four regulars tested positive for coronavirus and community transmissions were feared.

The speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, over the weekend summoned the Chinese ambassador to Nigeria, Zhou Pingjian, to a stern meeting which he filmed and posted on his Twitter account. South Africa’s response – with President Cyril Ramaphosa being the current chairperson of the AU – was more measured.

In a statement, on Sunday the Department of International Relations and Cooperation said it was “concerned” about the situation and was urging the Chinese authorities to investigate the incidents and take remedial action.

These reports “are inconsistent with the excellent relations that exist between China and Africa, dating back to China’s support during the decolonisation struggle in Africa, and now manifesting in an extensive Africa-China partnership,” the statement read. “This collaborative, mutual relationship also finds concrete expression in the support that China is providing to Africa in the ongoing fight against the Covid-19 pandemic.”

The Chinese government and businesses have made donations of masks and medical equipment to various African countries and through the AU, and China also offered its medical expertise. David Monyae, director for the Centre for Africa-China Studies at the University of Johannesburg said the Chinese government quickly realised that a standard government response – of restating official policies of non-discrimination – would be insufficient in this case.

He said this issue plays into “crisis between Beijing and Washington”, also in terms of who is handling the coronavirus issue better, and the competition between the two countries for domination in Africa. “Now Western countries have the upper hand,” Monyae said, “not just in terms of language, but the media as well.”

He said with the world in the midst of the Covid-19 crisis, this was a “delicate time”. He said it’s difficult to say whether there will be retaliation against Chinese people living in Africa, but he reckoned if the Chinese government reacted swiftly and constructively to the reports, they could still make good.

“What is happening at a very low rank, [are] fear, ignorance, racism, and it needs to be condemned in the strongest terms,” he said. David Monyae, however, added that goodwill between China and African countries would have to be restored as they needed each other for trade and raw materials.

Roberto Costello, an assistant professor at Lingnan University in Hong Kong, said in a podcast by the China-Africa Project this was a potential PR disaster for China.