Ghana's Gold-Mine Arrest, China's Latest Headache in Africa

In March 2013, Xi Jinping visited three African countries -- Tanzania, South Africa, and Republic of the Congo -- during his first trip abroad as the President of China. In 2012 alone, more than 2,000 Chinese companies have invested a total of US $20 billion. Increasing interaction between African countries and China seem to paint a rosy picture of the relationship, but the recent crackdown by the Ghanaian government on illegal gold miners, which resulted in the arrests of 124 Chinese workers in Ghana, has raised some red flags. As of June 7, five days after the crackdown, negotiations are still continuing in the hopes of resolving the crisis, according to the Embassy of China in Ghana. This is not the first time Chinese gold miners in Ghana have faced the imminent threat of being detained, .

beaten, shot, or even killed. In October 2012, a 16-year-old boy was shot to death while fleeing from armed security forces in the gold-rich Ashanti region. During that operation against illegal miners, more than 100 Chinese citizens were arrested. In the last few days, pictures sent from Chinese nationals, either arrested or still hiding out in the woods, are full of gory details and convey a sense of desperation continued