Resource conflict
No Congo, no phone
picture alliance/Middle East Images/Mouneb Taim
Without raw materials from the DRC, most of us would not have a smartphone.
In February, protestors took to the streets in The Hague to demand an end to the fighting in the eastern DRC. One of the images taken at the demonstration particularly caught my eye – a poster reading “No Congo No Phone”.
These four words should force everyone who has so far failed to take sufficient notice of the catastrophic humanitarian situation to look again. The ongoing conflict in the region concerns us all. The DRC produces 30 to 40 % of the global supply of coltan, a vital component of every computer and every smartphone. Surprisingly, however, it is not the DRC but Rwanda that is currently the largest exporter of coltan.
Rwanda is now widely believed to be supporting the M23 rebel group, which smuggles tonnes of illegally mined coltan across the border. The ore is then officially placed on the global market in Rwanda.
The west long viewed Rwanda as a model African partner. The previous UK government wanted to send refugees there, and major European football clubs also recommend ‘Visit Rwanda’ on their jerseys. It has taken a while for the industrialised nations to notice – or perhaps care – that Paul Kagame’s regime is engaged in foul play. Meanwhile, sanctions and condemnations are piling up for Rwanda.
DRC versus Apple
At the same time, the criminal case brought by the DRC against Apple in December is still ongoing. The American tech giant’s French and Belgian subsidiaries are accused of taking resources illegally extracted from mines operated by armed groups and smuggling them out of the conflict region into Rwanda. Once there, the resources – and by extension Apple’s supply chain – can be deemed “clean”. Donald Trump looks set to appoint his daughter’s father-in-law as special envoy to the Great Lakes Region, which is testimony to how important this region’s treasures are to global markets.
The current escalation of the conflict in the east of the DRC has ethnic dimensions too – groups like the Tutsi-led M23 emerged in part because the Tutsi minority suffers discrimination in the DRC. However, the battle for resources is the primary reason why the region has been plagued by unrest for decades.
The world’s insatiable appetite for natural resources creates a system in which rich countries and local elites profit. The Congolese people pay the price.
Katharina Wilhelm Otieno is a member of the editorial team at D+C and works from Nairobi at times.
euz.editor@dandc.eu