Congo in Crisis: Why your Cell Phone is Part of the Problem

The crisis in Congo is being fueled by a multi-million dollar trade in minerals that go into our electronic products from cell phones to digital cameras. Visit www.raisehopeforcongo.org to be a part of the solution.

© Center for American Progress

Category:

Nonprofits & Activism

Tags:

• Congo
• Africa
• Conflict Minerals
• Samsung
• Nokia
• Nintendo
• Apple
• iphone
• ipod
• Wii

[mostradicalmanever]

Food for thought.

IF this capital is taken away from these criminals fighting over the conflict minerals, aren't they just going to move to another arena to perpetrate crime? After all, this doesn't eliminate the perpetrators but only takes away one avenue of their income. Similar to making alcohol illegal, moved the criminals into other areas of making money. They didn't just go "oh geese, there goes that revenue, I guess I have to go straight now!"

[411314]

This is a case of a group of savages slaughtering innocent people, not "savages slaughtering each other", which implies that both sides are responsible.

[sunflowerofpeace]

don't have one...thank you for video..cheers from Canada :)..reminds me of the blood diamond issue...

[newsblaze]

Will not work.

If you succeed in shutting off US purchases, what will that do to the economy? Those in control of the resources will ship them elsewhere. Just as you can't shut down the arms trade, you can't shut down the metals trade. Traders will hope you succeed so price of these Congo resources drop, make more profit. They will make it untraceable. The bad guys will not stop what they are doing.

If you can't stop illegal drugs entering the US, how to stop trade in high value metals?

[postrealitysyndrome]

Not in this case I'd presume, since these minerals are the primary source of income in the region. The military factions are locals to the region, from the Congo or neighboring countries to the east. Furthermore, this is not an issue of prohibition of these materials, merely a strict accounting of its sources so the profit is taken away from the militant groups.

[ericderen]

Doing my part... I haven't bought a new cell phone in 5 years. I'm waiting for iPhone 4.0. THAT should be an amazing phone & OS combo. And hopefully they will have stopped "raping for mining" by then.

[MrBigBobba]

that is what the whole movement is; urging the major manufacturers of electronic not to use the conflict minerals

[fernfeyes]

Do your part by recycling all your electronics..the scrap is sent to China and India where children separate the minerals.

[AlphaOrionis1]

didnt i see you on a video concerning darfur??

[babylo0n71407]

What can we do to help put an end to this brutality?

[AlienDragon]

I lol at all the people here all shocked and in denial of this. I heard about this long ago heard it many other times so it's not new. Face it, corporations often get materials from questionable sources, and as the consumer, we ought to tell the corporations what we think of that so they can stop since we give them our money.