Congo’s Conflict Minerals Solutions http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JQIsLqkuATY /Congo http://www.iwantonly.com/watch/104242/ Enough Project http://www.enoughproject.org/conflictminerals101

Conflict Minerals refers to natural resources that are exploited and traded through conflict situations This exploitation helps finance human rights abuses or other such violations Companies can obtain licenses to extract metals, minerals or other raw materials from a country at war or in conflict from militias or warlords who have no legal claim to that resource

Conflict Minerals they may have helped those militias with logistics to fight other armies or militias paid them for unregulated materials that may have been mined or worked by essentially slave labour used militias to slaughter or displace the rightful owners to the resource making it available for exploitation; or other such abuses.

Fighting in Congo

What do you think are possible solutions?

U.S. July 2010 bill passed by the US senate requiring US-listed giants such as Hewlett-Packard and Apple to declare whether they source from Congo or its neighbours and to comply with future guidelines Company's http://www.raisehopeforcongo.org/content/conflict-minerals-company-rankings

U.S.

Solutions Pillage law the theft of resources during conflict is considered a war crime in all modern international criminal courts and a large number of domestic criminal systems. Companies who profit from trade in conflict minerals could be charged with war crimes. They will likely take more adequate steps to ensure the source of their materials were not involved with human right violations

Supply Chain From Congo to Consumption

Benefits Benefits investment and trade in the long term. Makes it more difficult and expensive for armed groups to exploit mineral resources illegally. At the same time it makes it easier for the legitimate resource owners to sell the resources through legitimate channels.

Benefits Revenues & taxes can be used for education, social welfare, health care national security Helps put an end to murder, rape and enslaving of innocent people

Criticisms Impoverish communities dependent on trade through loss of jobs and income Could deter businesses from operating or even investing in DRC Profits from mining represents 2/3 of revenue of North Kivu  this could lead to an increase in poverty, hunger, disease…