Hu Jintao announces new development aid for Namibia as Chinese leader continues tour of Africa

(AP) Chinese President Hu Jintao announced new development aid for Namibia on Monday, promising an interest-free loan and money for schools in the sparsely populated, mineral-rich desert country.

Hu, on an eight-nation tour of Africa, announced a package of measures as he paid tribute to the "brotherly friendship" shown by a "young country full of vitality and talent."

The Namibia-China Mineral Resources Investment and Development Corp. took out a full-page advertisement in the local newspaper welcoming Hu to the country, where many hope to benefit from an influx of Chinese investment and tourists. But the mood of celebration was not universal.

Namibia's National Society for Human Rights issued a statement condemning "gross and systematic human rights violations" in China. It voiced alarm at criticism from Namibians working for Chinese enterprises.

"Workers bitterly complain about slave-like and exploitative labor practices, while Namibian consumers have expressed deep concern about the import and dumping of cheap and unreliable Chinese products in the country," it said.

Namibian President Hifikepunye Pohamba, who took office in March 2005, has actively promoted cooperation with China. Trade between the two nations in the first 11 months of 2006 amounted to $240 million, an increase of 103 percent from the previous year.

Namibia, which has a population of 2 million people, is rich in diamonds and minerals such as uranium, zinc and cobalt.

It has a long-standing friendship with China, since the Asian country backed its struggle for independence from South Africa, which it achieved in March 1990.

Former President Sam Nujoma visited China 13 times, and Pohamba has already been twice, further cementing ties.

Hu arrived from Zambia, where he inaugurated an economic cooperation zone designed to draw $800 million in mining investment and create 60,000 jobs in the Copperbelt province.