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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
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Results for conflict minerals
22 results foundAuthor: Pole Institute Title: Blood Minerals: The Criminalization of the Mining Industry in Eastern DRC Summary: The socio-economic consequences of persistent conflict and state failure in Eastern Congo and the search for ways in which the Congolese can reappropriate their own destiny have always been at the heart of the work of Pole Institute. Partly triggered by Pole Institute's research on the mineral trade, much international discussion has arisen in recent years about reordering the Eastern Congolese economy in order to make it less conflict-prone. While recognising the good intentions behind these efforts, we are convinced that sustainable and sensible solutions can only be found by those directly concerned. For this, local actors and stakeholders need to come together in an atmosphere of trust and mutual respect in order to arrive at a common understading of the problem with a view to working out solutions. To this end, in 2010 Pole Institute has set up a Round Table around the mineral economy of Eastern Congo, uniting public and private decision makers, state reprensentatives, enterprises, mining cooperatives and civil society organisations. The first meeting of this Round Table in March 2010 gave rise to a series of written papers which are collected in this volume. They will serve as the basis for further discussion. 1. The Minerals of North Kivu: A Blessing or a Curse? In this first article Onesphore SEMATUMBA (Director of information at Pole Institute) describes the decline and deterioration of the mining sector in Eastern DRC and the way that a blessing (in terms of mineral abundance) has turned into a curse (the blood minerals over which many wars have been fought and countless civilian lives lost and societal life and structures destroyed). A sick mining industry has replaced a previously healthy and thriving agricultural and pastoral way of life. Sematumba asks: is it possible to decriminalize the mining industry and return to it some measure of national and international respectability, accountability and dignity? 2. A Congo without the Congolese. This is the illustrative phrase that Aloys TEGERA (Director of research at Pole Institute) uses in the second article in this dossier to highlight the flaws in what would otherwise be laudable efforts by the international community (e.g. Germany, the United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, the World Bank) to render the minerals of the DRC ‘clean’ and conflict-free. These efforts, Tegera argues, are largely ineffectual in a bankrupt Congo in which the State has ceased to exist in many parts of the country. In order to rehabilitate and decriminalize the mining industry which, according to Tegera, generates more than two-thirds of the revenue of North Kivu, it is necessary to, in the first place, work towards the re-establishment of the Congolese state. Any efforts by the international community to re-organize and legislate for the Congolese mining industry without taking this fundamental step into account risk failure, “unless, of course, the various lobbies have in mind a Congo without the Congolese, which would clearly be absurd”. 3. A state within a state. “Bisie is a state within a state. There is no authority, either at the territorial level, or that of the province, and much less on the national level, that is able to control what goes on in this region”. Primo Pascal RUDAHIGWA journalist and vice-president of Pole Institute, gives an account of life in Bisie, a mining settlement in the deep jungle of Walikale Territory in eastern DRC in which cassiterite is produced under extremely primitive and inhuman conditions. Rudahigwa’s description of this source of cassiterite paints a vivid picture of heavy military involvement (both government army and rebel groups) and of human misery. Those who benefit from the mineral produced in Bisie (which resembles “an immense refugee camp”) are not the local inhabitants but the military and mining companies and traders based outside the region, with no interest in investing in local communities. This, for Rudahigwa, is “one more example of bad governance: those in power do nothing for the people who produce the minerals”. 4. Absence of proportion. In this forth article of the dossier Emmanuel NDIMUBANZI NGOROBA (member of Pole Institute and the Manager of the Provincial Division of Mines, North Kivu) considers the legislative instruments in place to regulate the mining industry in the DRC, and he finds that this legislation riddled with internal contradictions and incoherence. Ndimubanzi paints a picture of a largely ineffectual body of legislation as legal texts are both in outright contradiction with each other as well as with the reality of the situation on the ground. Having highlighted the problems created by contradictory legislation governing the mining sector, he proposes that similar types of legislation governing other industries be critically reviewed, especially legislation governing the agricultural industry, the environment, land and forests. 5. Bringing the Congolese people back in. This pregnant phrase by Dominic JOHNSON (a journalist and researcher, member of Pole Institute) is at the heart of the fifth and last article in this dossier: “Bringing local people back in is therefore the key to the success of reform programmes for the mineral trade in Eastern Congo”. Johnson analyses the efforts of foreign governments, NGOs, the United Nations and international regulatory frameworks (American, British, German and others) to sanitize the mining industry of the DRC. A glaring lacuna in all these efforts is the lack of involvement of the Congolese people in seeking solutions to problems that face them in their own country, and Johnson argues that unless the Congolese people are brought “back in”, all these international efforts will remain, for their originators, an exercise in creating the DRC after their own image. Johnson argues that because of this failure to include the Congolese people in crucial debate on ‘their’ issues, the international community has made a serious error of judgment in not recognizing that the situation in the east of the DRC goes beyond just a presumed squabble over minerals and raises fundamental questions of the structuring of state power which have to be taken into account by anyone hoping to work with the Congolese state in order to reform the Congolese mining sector. Details: Goma, Democratic Republic of the Congo: Pole Institute, 2010. 46p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed November 7, 2011 at: http://www.pole-institute.org/documents/Blood_Minerals.pdf Year: 2010 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://www.pole-institute.org/documents/Blood_Minerals.pdf Shelf Number: 123248 Keywords: Conflict MineralsMining IndustryNatural Resources |
Author: Carius, Alexander Title: Minerals and Conflict: A Toolkit for Intervention Summary: This toolkit is part of a series that explores how development assistance can address key risk factors associated with conflict. One area that is receiving increasing attention is the relationship between natural resources and violence. In many recent conflicts, valuable or scarce resources — land, water, timber, or minerals — have played a central role in both causing and sustaining violence. In particular, valuable minerals took center stage after "conflict diamonds" or "blood diamonds" became a prominent feature of Sierra Leone's civil war. Unfortunately, competition over minerals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has followed a similarly brutal course. This toolkit: 1) examines the relationship between valuable minerals, such as diamonds or coltan, and violence; 2) discusses lessons learned in developing programs to deal with "conflict commodities"; 3) presents a range of program options; 4) provides a survey instrument that identifies key questions related to minerals and conflict; and 5) identifies relevant USAID mechanisms and implementing partners. Monitoring and evaluation tools are being developed.Together, the elements of this toolkit are designed to raise awareness about the linkages among valuable minerals, development assistance, and conflict; and to help integrate a conflict perspective into development programming. The toolkits in this series explore individual risk factors in depth.They do not identify all relevant factors linked to violence. As such, they are designed to serve as companion pieces to conflict assessments. Conflict assessments provide a broad overview of destabilizing patterns and trends in a society.They sift through the many potential causes of conflict that exist and zero in on those that are most likely to lead to violence (or renewed violence) in a particular context. While they provide recommendations about how to make development and humanitarian assistance more responsive to conflict dynamics, they do not provide detailed guidance on how to design specific activities.The toolkits in this series are intended to fill that gap by moving from a diagnosis of the problem to a more detailed discussion of potential interventions.Together, the assessment framework and toolkits are designed to help Missions gain a deeper understanding of the forces driving violence and to develop more strategic and focused interventions. This toolkit was initially authored by a team of researchers, including Alexander Carius (Adelphi Research); Geoffrey Dabelko (Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars); Doris Capistrano (CIFOR); Moira Feil (Adelphi Research); and Jason Switzer (International Institute for Sustainable Development). It was subsequently revised with substantial input from officers in USAID Missions, other bilateral and multilateral donor agencies, academic experts, and members of the NGO community. Comments, questions, and requests for additional information should be directed to the Office of Conflict Management and Mitigation. Details: Washington, D.C.: Office of Conflict Management and Mitigation, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), 2005. 30p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 21, 2012 at http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/cross-cutting_programs/conflict/publications/docs/CMM_Minerals_and_Conflict_Toolkit_April_2005.pdf Year: 2005 Country: International URL: http://www.usaid.gov/our_work/cross-cutting_programs/conflict/publications/docs/CMM_Minerals_and_Conflict_Toolkit_April_2005.pdf Shelf Number: 124639 Keywords: Conflict MineralsIllicit Mineral TradeNatural ResourcesViolence |
Author: Rubin, Jeffrey Title: Conflict Minerals: What Issuers Should Know Summary: The eastern Congo has been embroiled in violent conflict for more than fifteen years. It has been estimated that the conflict has cost, directly and indirectly, over 5,400,000 lives, more than any other conflict since World War II, and has involved a profound humanitarian crisis with rape as a weapon of war. For a number of years various nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), including notably The Enough Project based in Washington, have made efforts to stem the flow of funds to rebel groups, militias, and criminal networks within the Congolese army arising from the sale of the ores originating in the eastern Congo, the so-called “conflict minerals.” The efforts by the NGOs have been intended to influence companies at the top of the minerals supply chain to use their buying power to exert pressure downward through the entire supply chain and thereby to influence their suppliers to source only conflict-free minerals. The NGOs’ efforts to highlight the conflict minerals issues have been reflected in proposed Congressional legislation since 2008. In 2010, a bill introduced by Senator Durbin and Representative McDermott became part of the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, as Section 1502 of the Act. This memorandum presents a summary of certain provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act and the proposed rules of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) relating to conflict minerals. This summary has been prepared in order to assist companies to better understand the scope of the rules the SEC is required to implement. Because the SEC has not, at the date of this memorandum, adopted its final rules, the guidance set forth herein is subject to the qualification that the SEC’s final rules may differ from its proposed rules. We encourage readers to discuss the matters reviewed in this summary with attorneys of Hogan Lovells, both to review the statutory and proposed rulemaking provisions in greater detail and to consider the implications of these provisions to the specific business operations in which the reader is engaged. At the end of this memorandum is a suggested Company Action Plan that may be helpful in assisting companies preparing to comply with the conflict minerals provisions. Details: New York: Hogan Lovells, 2012. 28p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 7, 2012 at http://www.hoganlovells.com/files/Publication/c9f789ae-791b-42b5-8af8-5ee80173b9bf/Presentation/PublicationAttachment/7cc26192-815a-4df8-bc0b-3fdeba11c55f/Rubin%20Conflict%20Minerals%20Memorandum%20%282%29.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: http://www.hoganlovells.com/files/Publication/c9f789ae-791b-42b5-8af8-5ee80173b9bf/Presentation/PublicationAttachment/7cc26192-815a-4df8-bc0b-3fdeba11c55f/Rubin%20Conflict%20Minerals%20Memorandum%20%282%29.pdf Shelf Number: 126587 Keywords: Conflict MineralsIllegal TradeMineralsNatural Resources |
Author: American Bar Association Title: How Do Fortune 100 Corporations Address Potential Links to Human Rights Violations in a Globally Integrated Economy? Summary: The report, "How Do Fortune 100 Corporations Address Potential Links to Human Rights Violations in a Globally Integrated Economy?" presents the first ever analysis of major companies' publicly available policies on human trafficking, forced labor and the trade in conflict minerals. The researchers found that 54 percent of all Fortune 100 companies have publicly available policies addressing human trafficking and that 66 percent have policies on forced labor. Furthermore, when the research team eliminated companies without supply chains (such as those engaged in insurance, banking and financial services), the remaining 79 companies - termed the "Target Group" in the study - displayed even greater coverage, with nearly two-thirds (66 percent) having policies on human trafficking and more than three-quarters (76 percent) having policies on forced labor. In addition, over one third (37 percent) of all Fortune 100 companies had publicly available policies addressing conflict minerals and over four in ten (43 percent) of the Target Group had such policies. Because not all Fortune 100 companies deal in conflict minerals, the numbers on these policies are lower. Details: Washington, DC: American Bar Association; Tempe, AZ: Arizona State University, 2014. 45p. Source: Internet Resource: http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/human_rights/fortune_100_report_on_trafficking.authcheckdam.pdf Year: 2014 Country: International URL: http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/administrative/human_rights/fortune_100_report_on_trafficking.authcheckdam.pdf Shelf Number: 132547 Keywords: BusinessesConflict MineralsForced LaborHuman Rights AbusesHuman Trafficking |
Author: Dranginis, Holly Title: Going for Gold: Engaging the Jewelry Industry in Responsible Gold Sourcing in Africa's Great Lakes Region Summary: For thousands of years, gold has represented love, tradition, wealth, beauty, and decadence. In the United States alone, these associations cause the gold jewelry industry to be worth more than five billion dollars annually. Halfway around the world, however, the extraction and smuggling of gold serves as an important means of funding for armed groups and army commanders in the deadliest conflict since World War II. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo ("Congo"), violent armed actors mine, tax, and smuggle minerals and perpetrate widespread atrocities. Major supply chain reforms by electronics companies, coupled with the Dodd-Frank Act's section on conflict minerals and the beginnings of a minerals certification process in the Great Lakes region of Africa, have led to a marked improvement in the security situation at tin, tantalum, and tungsten (3T) mines in Congo. Over two-thirds of the eastern Congo's 3T mines are conflict-free today. Gold, however, remains a major financial lifeline for armed actors. 98 percent of artisanally mined gold - estimated at between $383 and $409 million in 2013 - is smuggled out of the country annually, and much of that gold benefits armed commanders. Gold sold by armed groups into the global supply chain ends up in various products, including jewelry, which is the main overall end user of gold. Conflict gold thus taints the industry as a whole. Fortunately, jewelry retailers and consumers can play important roles to help end the conflict gold trade and the suffering it causes, together with the actions of governments. Corporate and consumer behavior can lead to increased demand for responsibly sourced, conflict-free gold and promote investment in positive mining initiatives in the region. As the largest end-user of gold, making up around 45 percent of worldwide gold demand, jewelry companies have the ability to increase demand for conflict-free gold from Congo and the region. Resolving the conflict gold problem in Congo and the Great Lakes region will require concerted efforts by a number of actors, including governments worldwide, especially the United States, India, China, the United Arab Emirates, and in the region. International and local civil society actors, mining and refining companies, and artisanal mining groups must also play a role. But leadership by the companies that sell jewelry is an indispensable component to changing market demand to favor enterprises that promote peace and prosperity over those that entrench violence and criminality. The Enough Project has engaged with the largest jewelry retailers in an effort to encourage companies to use their power and resources in more robust, effective ways to support responsible sourcing in Congo and the Great Lakes region of Africa . To highlight leadership opportunities for companies that sell jewelry, Enough surveyed the 14 largest North American jewelry retailers through a detailed questionnaire and direct consultations. Our survey assessed what policies the retailers have adopted and which actions they have taken to counter the use of conflict gold. Details: Washington, DC: Enough Project, 2014. 84p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 7, 2016 at: http://www.enoughproject.org/files/publications/GoingForGoldAndAnnex-EnoughProject-Nov2014.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Africa URL: http://www.enoughproject.org/files/publications/GoingForGoldAndAnnex-EnoughProject-Nov2014.pdf Shelf Number: 139295 Keywords: Conflict MineralsExploitation of Natural ResourcesGoldNatural ResourcesSmuggling of Natural Resources |
Author: Global Witness Title: War in the Treasury of the People: Afghanistan, Lapis Lazuli and the battle for mineral wealth Summary: new investigation today reveals how Afghanistan's 6,500 year old lapis mines are driving corruption, conflict and extremism in the country. Global Witness has found that the Taliban and other armed groups are earning up to 20 million dollars per year from Afghanistan's lapis mines, the world's main source of the brilliant blue lapis lazuli stone, which is used in jewellery around the world. As a result, the Afghan lapis lazuli stone should now be classified as a conflict mineral. The lapis mines are in the Badakhshan region, once one of the more stable areas in Afghanistan, even at the height of Taliban control. However, violent competition for control of the lucrative mines and their revenue, between local strong men, local MPs and the Taliban has deeply destabilised the province and made it one of the hotbeds of the insurgency. With the Taliban on the outskirts of the mines themselves, as well as controlling key roads into the mining areas, there is now a real risk that the mines could fall into their hands. Global Witness' investigation also includes evidence that the Badakhshan mines are a strategic priority for the so-called Islamic State. Unless the Afghan government acts rapidly to regain control, the battle for the lapis mines is set to intensify and further destabilise the country, as well as fund extremism. The lapis mines in Afghanistan's Badakhshan region are a microcosm of a problem that is replicated across the country, where mining is the Taliban's second biggest source of income. Money from Afghanistan's mines should be an important source of wealth to fund essential services, including security, health and education. Afghanistan sits on over a trillion dollars' worth of mineral, oil and gas deposits, which could provide the government with over $2 billion in revenue a year, if developed properly. But rampant corruption and a failure to secure mining sites means that mines have been targeted by insurgent groups and are now a major contributor to conflict and extremism. The new Afghan mining law, which is currently being amended by the government, fails to include the actions needed to counter this threat, the report warns. Details: London: Global Witness, 2016. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed June 10, 2016 at: https://www.globalwitness.org/en-gb/campaigns/afghanistan/war-treasury-people-afghanistan-lapis-lazuli-and-battle-mineral-wealth/ Year: 2016 Country: Afghanistan URL: https://www.globalwitness.org/en-gb/campaigns/afghanistan/war-treasury-people-afghanistan-lapis-lazuli-and-battle-mineral-wealth/ Shelf Number: 139368 Keywords: Conflict MineralsPolitical CorruptionPrecious MineralsTalibanTerrorist Financing |
Author: Verite Title: The Nexus of Illegal Gold Mining and Human Trafficking in Global Supply Chains: Lessons from Latin America Summary: Research carried out by Verite has found that Latin American countries export staggering amounts of illegally mined gold tied to human trafficking. This presents legal and reputational risks for major companies with gold in their supply chains. The paper, The Nexus of Illegal Gold Mining and Human Trafficking in Global Supply Chains, provides analysis of the risk of labor trafficking linked to illegal gold mining in Latin America, drawing upon in-depth field research carried out by Verite in Peru in 2012-2013 and in Colombia in 2015, and desk research carried out across the Latin American region. The diminishing supply and increasing demand for gold, combined with criminal and armed groups' quest for new sources of illicit revenue, have contributed to a surge in illegal extraction of gold from increasingly remote and lawless regions. Latin America is a vitally important player in the global gold trade, contributing 20 percent of the world's gold production in 2013. Latin American countries, along with Canada (which is a major conduit for Latin American gold), constitute all top ten exporters of gold to the United States. In several Latin American countries, unregulated illegal and informal mines account for over 75 percent of gold produced. In Peru and Colombia-the two largest cocaine producers in the world-the value of illegal gold exports has in recent years surpassed the value of cocaine exports, becoming the largest illicit export from these two countries. In Latin America, and elsewhere in the world, illegally mined gold is strongly linked to human trafficking and other labor abuses as these mines are usually located in areas with a weak presence of government authorities and a strong presence of armed and criminal groups. Verite's in-depth research in Peru found many other indicators of forced labor in illegal gold mining, all of which increase the risk of human trafficking. In Colombia, both men and women were found to be vulnerable to labor trafficking in mines controlled by armed and criminal groups. Small-scale artisanal miners, who should in no way be confused with the groups that control illegal mines, are also increasingly vulnerable to becoming victims of debt bondage, both because they are extorted by these groups and because some governments treat them as criminals rather than as potential victims. In addition, illegal gold mining is closely associated with child labor, severe threats to workers' health and safety, and sex trafficking. Child labor - including forced child labor-is common in illegal gold mining. While children are generally employed in peripheral services such as tire and motorcycle repair and stores, teenagers are employed in many of the most dangerous jobs in illegal gold mines, such as swimming in mercury-filled pools of water to suck up gold-laced sand with powerful hoses, risking drowning and being disemboweled by the powerful hoses. Workers also face mine collapses and explosions, repetitive tasks, heavy work, and exposure to extreme heat, dust, noise, tropical illnesses, and mercury and cyanide. Verite field research found that sex trafficking, including of girls as young as 12, is extremely pervasive in illegal mining areas. Illegally mined gold is "laundered" and exported, with the help of corrupt government officials, to prominent refineries, which supply some of the biggest central banks, jewelry companies, and electronics producers in the world. In contrast to other goods produced by organized criminal groups such as cocaine or heroin, illegally mined gold can easily be laundered, after which it becomes a legitimate consumer commodity that moves easily and legally across international borders. The ubiquity of illegally-mined gold and the lack of transparency upstream of most gold refineries means that companies buying gold from major refineries are often at risk of illegally mined gold entering their supply chains. A Verite analysis of Dodd-Frank Act compliance records found that 72 of the Fortune 500 companies filed conflict mineral reports during 2015 listing the smelters and refineries from which they obtained their gold the previous year. Verite found that approximately 90 percent of these companies purchased gold from refineries that have demonstrated a pattern of purchasing illegally mined gold from Latin America. Companies that source illegally produced gold from Latin America face severe reputational and legal risks, including potential liability under a number of statutes covering company complicity in trafficking in persons, forced and child labor, organized crime, corruption, and conflict minerals. Some of these statutes stipulating steep fines for companies and even long jail sentences for their executives. Combatting illegal gold mining and the human and labor rights abuses that accompany it requires a coordinated, multi-pronged approach by the governments of gold producing countries, as well as the countries and companies that import gold. While some Latin American governments have recently stepped up efforts to prosecute individuals and companies that illegally extract and export gold, the governments of gold importing countries have thus far done relatively little to hold accountable the companies that import this gold, although they have the tools and mandate to do so. Companies must also take steps to ensure that they are not responsible for perpetuating organized crime, violence, corruption, and human trafficking by purchasing, directly or indirectly, illegally mined gold from Latin America. Details: Amherst, MA: Verite, 2016. 17p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed August 30, 2016 at: http://www.verite.org/sites/default/files/Verite-Report-Illegal_Gold_Mining.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Latin America URL: http://www.verite.org/sites/default/files/Verite-Report-Illegal_Gold_Mining.pdf Shelf Number: 140083 Keywords: Child LaborConflict MineralsForced LaborGold Mining Human TraffickingNatural ResourcesOrganized CrimeSupply Chains |
Author: Johannisson, Frederik Title: Child mined gold in your gadgets? Summary: The gold producing countries of Africa are currently benefiting from a global rise of gold prices. With the increasing gold demand, major gold producing West African countries such as Ghana and Mali are experiencing a gold rush, and in both countries, employment and revenues are on the rise in the respective gold sectors. The increasing gold demand is among other industries coming from the booming electronics sector, which now sources more than 6 per cent of global gold consumption. However, the benefits of the rise in gold demand and prices are not necessarily felt by the artisanal small scale miners, which often live in secluded and poor areas. Here, the work to uncover gold is hard, dangerous and the pay is low and unreliable. In West Africa, child labour is not uncommon in small scale mining: They take on hard and dangerous tasks just like adults. For children engaged in small scale mining, gold digging can be a luring profession to sustain their own and their families livelihoods, and can out-compete unattractive and unpromising schools. However, for miners, and especially children, gold has a high price: Workers die in accidents in mines, expose themselves to dangerous mercury and children are locked in unskilled work for the rest of their lives. With an increasing public attention to the consequences of the production and trade of conflict minerals in DR Congo, the IT industries sourcing these minerals are increasingly engaging in initiatives that are meant to trace and source minerals from conflict areas more ethically. But the IT industries have yet to take serious interest in the origin of the gold that is a key component in most consumer electronics, and none of the questioned IT companies in the report could declare the origin of the gold that is used in their products. Even without being in a conflict setting, gold can still have a high, and sometimes deadly price in the unregulated mining communities in Africa, as in Ghana and Mali. In addition, consumers, either of jewellery or of IT products cannot tell which price the workers have paid for the gold that ends up in their products. Details: Copenhagen, Denmark: DanWatch, 2013. 38p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 17, 2016 at: https://www.danwatch.dk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Child-mined-in-your-gadgets.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Africa URL: https://www.danwatch.dk/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/Child-mined-in-your-gadgets.pdf Shelf Number: 140323 Keywords: Child Labor Conflict MineralsGold Mining |
Author: U.S. General Accounting Office Title: SEC Conflict Minerals Rule: Companies Face Continuing Challenges in Determining Whether Their Conflict Minerals Benefit Armed Groups Summary: Armed groups in eastern DRC continue to profit from the exploitation of minerals, according to the United Nations. Congress included a provision in the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act that, among other things, required SEC to promulgate regulations regarding the use of conflict minerals from the DRC and adjoining countries. The act also required Commerce to develop a list of worldwide processing facilities and to assess IPSAs filed in conjunction with SEC disclosures, and included provisions for GAO to assess the SEC regulations effectiveness in promoting peace and security and report on the rate of sexual violence in the DRC and adjoining countries. This report examines (1) company disclosures filed in 2015 in response to the SEC conflict minerals regulations, (2) challenges to companies due diligence efforts related to the processing facilities in conflict minerals supply chains and efforts to mitigate those challenges, and (3) Commerces actions regarding its conflict mineralsrelated requirements under the DoddFrank Act. The report also provides information on sexual violence in the DRC and three adjoining countries. GAO analyzed a generalizable random sample of SEC filings and interviewed relevant officials. What GAO Recommends GAO recommends that Commerce establish a plan outlining steps and time frames for assessing the accuracy of due diligence processes such as IPSAs, and developing the necessary expertise to fulfill these requirements. Commerce concurred with GAOs recommendation. Details: Washington, DC: GAO, 2016. 56p. Source: Internet Resource: GAO-16-805: Accessed September 17, 2016 at: http://www.gao.gov/assets/680/679232.pdf Year: 2016 Country: United States URL: http://www.gao.gov/assets/680/679232.pdf Shelf Number: 147932 Keywords: Armed ConflictConflict Minerals |
Author: de Koning, Ruben Title: Striking Gold: How M23 and its Allies are Infiltrating Congo's Gold Trade Summary: The M23 rebel group has taken over a profitable part of the conflict gold trade in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, or DRC. It is using revenues from the illicit trade to benefit its leaders and supporters and fund its military campaign by building military alliances and networks with other armed groups that control territory around gold mines and by smuggling gold through Uganda and Burundi. M23 commander Sultani Makenga, who is also allegedly one of the rebels' main recruiters of child soldiers according to the U.N. Group of Experts on Congo, is at the center of the conflict gold efforts. This report documents how Makenga and his former co-commander Bosco Ntaganda have led the M23 rebels to work with local armed groups in gold-rich territories to smuggle gold to Uganda via an M23-controlled border crossing, as well as to Burundi, where it is sold internationally. Much of this conflict gold then reaches markets in the United Arab Emirates, or UAE, before going on to banks and jewelers, which together make up 80 percent of global gold demand. Gold is now the most important conflict mineral in eastern Congo, with at least 12 tons worth roughly $500 million smuggled out of the east every year. The other main sources of revenue for armed groups - the "3T minerals" of tin, tungsten, and tantalum - have been steadily reduced due to global conflict-minerals reforms spurred by the U.S. Dodd-Frank financial regulation law, but it is still relatively easy to smuggle gold. Limiting gold smuggling from eastern Congo must therefore become a priority for the international community. M23 commander Makenga is taking over a gold-smuggling network that former cocommander Bosco Ntaganda built over several years. As military leader of the rebel National Congress for the Defense of the People, or CNDP, a forerunner of M23, Ntaganda in 2011 reportedly brokered several multimillion-dollar gold deals in Goma, DRC; Kampala, Uganda; and Nairobi, Kenya, between Congolese traders and overseas buyers. In 2012, Ntaganda led the newly created M23 as it broke away from the Congolese army, in which its troops had been integrated as part of a peace deal. During his time with M23 and in the shadow of the peace talks in Kampala between Congo's government and the M23, Ntaganda facilitated the transfer of an estimated 325 kilos of gold worth $15 million to Kampala for sale, according to the U.N. experts. Ntaganda admitted to the U.N. experts that he played a role in one deal in 2011 in Goma, but he never commented on his role in other deals he allegedly brokered. In March 2013, Ntaganda surrendered to the U.S. Embassy in Rwanda, where he requested to transfer to the International Criminal Court, or ICC, to face charges of war crimes. Since then, Enough Project's investigations with gold-trade insiders, Congolese civil and military authorities, and members of the Congolese diaspora communities in Kampala and Bujumbura show that Makenga is taking over Ntaganda's relationships with smugglers in Uganda. Makenga has also mobilized several other military and business players loyal to former CNDP leader Laurent Nkunda to create a business network entirely separate from Ntaganda, according to Enough Project investigations. To capture a greater share of the gold trade, M23 has built alliances with individuals and armed groups that control large mines in eastern Congo. These include Sheka Ntabo Ntaberi of the Nduma Defence of Congo, or NDC, armed group in Walikale territory of eastern Congo - the alleged mastermind of the mass rape of more than 300 women, children, and men at Luvungi in 2010. M23 has built ties with Justin Banaloki - whose alias is "Cobra Matata" - the armed leader who is based in Ituri District and was highlighted in the October 2013 National Geographic. M23 is also associated with Congolese army defector and militia leader Maj. Hilaire Kombi in Beni and Lubero territories, according to U.N. experts and Enough Project research. Traversing otherwise hostile ethnic and political divisions, these alliances are based partially on economic gain. Many of those who reap the greatest profits are also those most directly implicated in atrocities and crimes against humanity. On the basis of recent Enough Project investigations and past research by the U.N. Group of Experts, this report identifies three main gold exporters that the Enough Project believes are enabling M23 and associated armed groups to profit from the gold trade by either running or using official gold export companies in Uganda and Burund - all of which is in violation of the U.N. arms embargo: - Rajendra "Raju" Kumar, who currently trades through Mineral Impex Uganda and formerly ran Machanga, Ltd. - Mutoka Ruganyira, who currently operates through Ntahangwa Mining in Burundi and formerly ran Berkenrode - Madadali Sultanali Pirani, who currently runs Silver Minerals in Uganda Additionally, a major Congolese exporter has reportedly been trading gold from mines controlled by the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, or FDLR, and other armed groups for several years, according to several U.N. Groups of Experts: - Evariste Shamamba, who currently runs Etablissement Namukaya and New CongoCom Airlines16 The international community has done very little to combat the sale of conflict gold effectively. None of the above-mentioned individuals, or the companies they currently run, face U.N., U.S., or E.U. sanctions. The only international sanctions against conflict gold companies were enacted in 2007, but the owners of the sanctioned companies immediately set up new gold-exporting businesses under different corporate names. Sanctions against the four exporters would make an important dent in the conflict gold trade, since they control a significant portion of the illicit trade. Gold exporters generally claim to purchase their gold either domestically or in countries that are not under a U.N. arms embargo. The fact that a significant part of conflict gold trade enters the formal worldwide gold trade shows an urgent need to levy targeted international sanctions on the individual exporters - the beneficial owners of these businesses - who are complicit. In order to conduct and facilitate due diligence following guidelines established by the United Nations and the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, or OECD, the international community should intensify pressure on companies, company owners, and their host governments that are importing and refining gold from the region. While such sanctions are important to bring the illicit gold trade under control and further reduce sources of revenue for armed groups, the agony of eastern Congo will ultimately end when the key parties - Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda - reach a just, comprehensive peace agreement. The best hope for that is the process led by U.N. Special Envoy Mary Robinson, following the Peace, Security, and Cooperation Framework signed earlier this year. Details: Enough Project, 2013. 21p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 19, 2016 at: http://www.enoughproject.org/files/StrikingGold-M23-and-Allies-Infiltrating-Congo-Gold-Trade.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://www.enoughproject.org/files/StrikingGold-M23-and-Allies-Infiltrating-Congo-Gold-Trade.pdf Shelf Number: 140353 Keywords: Conflict MineralsGold MiningGold SmugglingIllegal TradeIllicit TradeNatural ResourcesSmuggling |
Author: Southern Africa Resource Watch Title: Conflict Gold to Criminal Gold: The New Face of Artisanal Gold mining in Congo Summary: Gold miners in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) no longer fear homicidal warlords and militias but they are still being ruthlessly exploited - by a plague of corrupt government officials, bureaucrats and security personnel, who all demand illegal taxes, fees and levies from the miners without delivering any meaningful services in return, according to a major research report released today. Produced by the Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW), the report - Conflict Gold to Criminal Gold: The new face of artisanal gold mining in Congo - highlights the poor governance of the mining sector, which could be the driving force behind genuine socio-economic development in the region, and the daily battle for survival by thousands of artisanal and small scale gold miners, who produce nearly all of eastern DRC's gold. Details: Rosebank, South Africa: Southern Africa Resource Watch, 2012. 52p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 19, 2016 at: http://www.osisa.org/sites/default/files/from_conflict_gold_to_criminal_gold.pdf Year: 2012 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://www.osisa.org/sites/default/files/from_conflict_gold_to_criminal_gold.pdf Shelf Number: 140360 Keywords: Conflict MineralsGold MiningPolitical Corruption |
Author: Southern Africa Resource Watch Title: The High Cost of Congolese Gold: Poverty, Abuse and the Collapse of Family and Community Structures Summary: In its first ground breaking research report into artisanal gold mining in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Southern Africa Resource Watch (SARW) demonstrated how the industry had been transformed in recent years - moving from Conflict Gold to Criminal Gold. Based on unprecedented research in communities in the four main gold producing provinces (North-Kivu, South-Kivu, Maniema and Oriental), the report concluded that artisanal miners were now being preyed upon by a host of state bureaucrats, officials and security officers rather than warlords and militias - and that they were, in many cases, even worse off than before. In this second report, The High Cost of Congolese Gold: Poverty, Abuse and the Collapse of Family and Community Structures, SARW focuses on the lives of the miners and their families - highlighting how hundreds of thousands of people live in grinding poverty in the midst of the richest mineral resources in the DRC, as corrupt political, military, commercial and traditional elites syphon off most of the funds that should be fuelling socio-economic growth and development. With an estimated 30 million ounces of gold reserves in eastern DRC, mining communities should be thriving but instead they are being torn apart by poverty, abuse, alcoholism and violence, which are destroying community and family structures and leaving many people in a perpetual state of near-starvation. In this environment, the most vulnerable - particularly women and girls - suffer daily violence, exploitation, neglect and abuse. From the hundreds of interviews with women, girls and boys that SARW researchers conducted during ten months in the field, some key facts emerged: Most women, including married mothers, have to struggle on their own for survival. Many are forced to fend for themselves from far too early in life and often end up married and pregnant long before reaching full maturity. Large numbers are victims of sexual, physical and mental abuse. Many are abandoned by their husbands or forced to accept bigamous relationships. Few girls complete their education; When boys reach the age of 10-12, they are usually expected to fend for themselves, especially as their parents are often too poor to continue caring for them. This forces them to start working on gold mining sites rather than staying in school. Many boys assist in the washing of gold ore, while stronger boys can find work as carriers or even as diggers. However, the majority just scrounge for gold dust in tailings, or in abandoned or inactive mining sites; and The traditional and tribal governance and mediation mechanisms have broken down. Traditional leaders, known as Bwami are now often merely another elite that preys on the artisanal community. Women and girls very rarely seek help or redress from them since they expect that they will not receive assistance but merely become the victims of more corrupt demands - the same reason why they seldom seek redress through the formal judicial system. If women do seek non-family interventions, it is usually from the councils of wise men that still appear to function in most communities. The SARW researchers also discovered devastating levels of tension and friction between gold mining husbands and their wives. The key disagreement concerns the question of whether gold mining is a valid livelihood. Most men are not interested in considering this question, preferring to enjoy the financial windfalls they receive on the rare occasions that they manage to find some gold. However, the overwhelming majority of women offer well-founded social, economic, health and security reasons why their husbands should abandon gold mining altogether. And the situation is only likely to get worse. Many artisanal miners are hoping to obtain employment with one of the international mining communities that are now gearing up to start industrial gold production in eastern DRC. However, industrial mining requires less manpower. In addition, most artisanal miners lack marketable skills and exhibit very poor work habits. For these reasons, a very large percentage of the artisanal gold miners, who currently operate on territories that are licensed to international mining companies, are unlikely to gain permanent employment once industrial mining begins. In fact, artisanal miners and their families will increasingly be viewed as illegal squatters. Companies that are planning (and are legally obliged) to pump hundreds of millions of dollars into their mining operations will insist on unencumbered access to the gold deposits on their concessions. Consequently, artisanal miners will be pushed towards areas with deposits of lesser and lesser value - until they are eventually made to leave the concession areas altogether. Currently, the inevitability of this outcome is as certain as the lack of any preparations to mitigate it. Details: Rosebank, South Africa: SARW, 2013. 20p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 19, 2016 at: http://www.osisa.org/sites/default/files/high_cost_of_congolese_gold.pdf Year: 2013 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://www.osisa.org/sites/default/files/high_cost_of_congolese_gold.pdf Shelf Number: 140361 Keywords: Conflict MineralsGold MiningNatural ResourcesSocio-Economic Conditions |
Author: Bromberg, Megan Title: Mapping the Illicit Mineral Trade: Identifying the Illicit Supply Chain for Diamonds, Gold, and Tantalum Across Contexts Summary: The illicit mineral trade is a global issue that affects all countries, as illicit or conflict minerals continue to unwittingly end up in our jewelry, phones, and laptops. Whether these minerals come from unregulated mines that use child labor and harm the environment, fund the insurgencies of armed groups, or are smuggled into neighboring countries by corrupt government officials, the illicit mineral trade is dependent on the exploitation of poverty and those who rely on the mining to survive. Details: Washington, DC: American University, 2016. 100p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 20, 2016 at: http://www.american.edu/sis/practica/upload/Mapping-the-Illicit-Mineral-Trade.pdf Year: 2016 Country: International URL: http://www.american.edu/sis/practica/upload/Mapping-the-Illicit-Mineral-Trade.pdf Shelf Number: 145610 Keywords: Conflict MineralsDiamondsGoldIllegal MiningIllicit MineralsIllicit TradeNatural Resources |
Author: Masse, Frederic Title: Due Diligence in Colombia's Gold Supply Chain Summary: The OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Supply Chains of Minerals from Conflict-Affected and High-Risk Areas (hereafter OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Minerals) provides detailed recommendations to help companies respect human rights and avoid contributing to conflict through their mineral purchasing decisions and practices. The Due Diligence Guidance is for use by any company potentially sourcing minerals or metals from conflict-affected and high-risk areas and is global in scope. Colombia adhered to the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Minerals in May 2012. To support implementation efforts by producing countries, the OECD commissioned a baseline assessment of the gold supply chain in Colombia. The aim of the baseline assessment is to analyse the gold mining sector in Colombia and the potential to build responsible mineral supply chains as defined in the Due Diligence Guidance for Minerals. The assessment should furthermore assess stakeholders' awareness of supply chain risks, the Due Diligence Guidance and the level of implementation - if any - of due diligence initiatives and related government initiatives that could be leveraged. The assessment should lead to strategic recommendations on how to advance responsible sourcing in the gold sector in a manner that makes a positive contribution to socioeconomic development of producer countries and communities. The following overview report is the first of a series of baseline assessment and aims to develop an initial approach and analysis for how risks outlined in Annex II of the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Minerals are relevant in the Colombian context. The research for this report was undertaken by independent experts in 2015 and is based on previous research, new analysis of secondary sources, and exploratory interviews with key stakeholders in the mining and security sectors in Colombia.3 This initial report will be complemented by five regional case studies (phase II) and a concluding report (phase III) assessing ongoing due diligence and traceability projects and outlining recommendations on how these can be leveraged, improved and scaled up. Details: Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), 2016. 48p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed September 30, 2016 at: https://mneguidelines.oecd.org/Colombia-gold-supply-chain-overview.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Colombia URL: https://mneguidelines.oecd.org/Colombia-gold-supply-chain-overview.pdf Shelf Number: 140534 Keywords: Conflict MineralsGoldIllegal MiningNatural ResourcesOrganized CrimeSupply Chains |
Author: Jaekel, Theo Title: Far From Reality: How the EU falls short in preventing the illicit trade of conflict minerals Summary: In recent years, international efforts have sought to address issues related to the illicit trade of conflict minerals fueling conflicts across the globe. One such initiative is reflected in Section 1502 of the U.S. Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Act, passed in 2010, which targets companies listed on the U.S. stock exchange using conflict minerals in their products. The provision requires such companies to carry out supply chain due diligence and to annually report on this issue. The Dodd-Frank Act has led to an increased application of various other international guidelines and norms, as well as new national legislation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), one of the most mineral rich countries in the world. Important developments in the DRC in recent years include: 1) requirements on mining operations to be validated in order to legally trade minerals, and 2) a traceability system designed to increase transparency in the supply chain. There are however severe challenges in the implementation of the new regulations, and much work remains to be done in order to establish functional and trusted frameworks. Miners interviewed by Swedwatch during a field trip to the DRC tell of harsh and dangerous working environments and dire economic conditions. Government officials experience problems in regards to insufficient funding, and therefore lack the capacity to validate and monitor mining activities, and enforce the rule of law. Mining companies lose a substantial share of minerals to smugglers who circumvent the legal requirements. And NGOs report widespread corruption among government authorities, compromising the traceability and validation systems, as well as lack of engagement and tax avoidance by large mining companies. Despite their differences, key stakeholders in the DRC agree that EU legislation is needed to tackle the systemic flaws within the mining industry. On 15 June 2016, after months of negotiations, the EU agreed an outline deal on a new regulation on conflict minerals due diligence. The agreement is a welcome step in the right direction, but the compromise fails to address key issues and this may undermine the purpose of the legislation itself. The main critical gap relates to the scope of the agreement only applying to upstream companies. The agreed scope covers only a fraction of minerals that end up in the EU - requiring only upstream companies, i.e. smelters/refiners, to conduct due diligence. Downstream companies, placing minerals on the EU market in the form of finished products, such as mobile phones, laptops and cars, are exempt. Already existing standards, such as the OECD Guidance, include clear provisions for both upstream and downstream companies to conduct on-going due diligence. Thus, the entire supply chain of minerals is covered and engages each actor in the chain. The EU agreement fails to live up to the existing standards. Legislation requiring all companies to conduct due diligence was an opportunity for the EU to address the severe and pressing human rights risks in global supply chains of conflict minerals. Instead, the negotiations reached only a partial solution. Details: Stockholm: Swedwatch, 2016. 38p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 14, 2016 at: http://www.swedwatch.org/sites/default/files/tmp/80_kongo_enkelsidor.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Europe URL: http://www.swedwatch.org/sites/default/files/tmp/80_kongo_enkelsidor.pdf Shelf Number: 144865 Keywords: Conflict MineralsIllegal MiningIllegal TradeIllicit TradeNatural Resources |
Author: International Peace Information Service (IPIS) Title: Third Party Review of the Bisie Security Report Summary: The so-called 'Bisie Mineral Stock' encompasses about 1,000 tons of cassiterite, extracted by artisanal miners at Bisie mines between November 2010 and June 2015. A number of bans on mining and mineral trade in this region, as well as some hesitance further down the supply chain to buy untagged minerals, meant that mineral production was not marketed, but stored in warehouses. From 2014 onwards, national and international stakeholders developed a stock clearance strategy for the sale of these minerals. As a reference for potential purchasers to contribute towards their decision-making process on reasonable due diligence and risk mitigation measures, Pact developed a Bisie Security Report that documents the security situation. Considering the complexity of the situation, the Conflict Free Sourcing Initiative (CFSI) contracted IPIS to review the report. IPIS agrees with the Bisie Security Report on the limited rebel involvement in Bisie mining since the start of the stock accumulation in 2012. However, Global Witness and IPIS reports from 2012 and 2013 present clear and detailed accounts of indirect illegal taxation by FARDC at the mines, which complement the Security Report's observations. Furthermore, IPIS' report discusses i.a. allegations of overestimation of the stock's registered volumes, a lack of transparency regarding financing, potential risks of creating a precedent for future stock evacuations, and local tensions in and around Bisie between Bisie's titleholder Alphamin Bisie Mining SA and artisanal miners' cooperatives. Details: Antwerpen: IPIS, 2016. 38p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 15, 2016 at: http://ipisresearch.be/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/20160718_Bisie.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://ipisresearch.be/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/20160718_Bisie.pdf Shelf Number: 140754 Keywords: Conflict MineralsIllegal MiningMining IndustryNatural Resources |
Author: Ewing, Jonathan Title: A Lot of Gold, A Lot of Trouble: A study of humanitarian impacts of the gold industry in DR Congo Summary: The Democratic Republic of the Congo (Congo-Kinshasa or DR Congo) is a country still recovering from a ruinous eight-year civil war that killed more than 5.4 million people. The value of untapped deposits of raw minerals is equivalent to the combined gross domestic product of Europe and the United States. Cobalt, diamonds, copper and, of course, gold is on the list along with highly sought after casserite, wolframite and coltan, which are used in consumer electronic products. Much of the extraction, or mining, is done in small operations known as artisanal, or small-scale mining, where the regulations that govern the activities are rarely enforced. Recently, more money is being invested into the extraction and refining of some of the ores found in the DR Congo, primarily copper, cobalt, and very recently, gold in Orientale Province. Mineral Invest International MII AB is a Swedish junior gold mining company surrounded by some of the largest international players in the extractive sector. Despite its diminutive size and its limited financial resources, the local community is waiting for Mineral Invest to increase its operation. The artisanal miners hope for jobs and the local community is waiting for development in the form of schools, hospitals and improved roads. According to Mineral Invest's website, the company has laudable plans for development projects in the area where it operates. Swedwatchs' and Diakonia's study shows that investment in post-conflict countries like DR Congo should require proper due diligence and a social licence to operate. So far, this has not been carried out. The DR Congo's Cadastre Minier has issued the licenses to SOKIMO, which is a partner in the joint venture with Mineral Invest. This joint venture features significant payments to the Democratic Republic of the Congo without specifying the recipient authority or entity within the state, which is a problem of transparency. The contractual agreement between Mineral Invest and the Congolese state-run mining company, SOKIMO, implies conflicts of interest and a lack of clarity. SOKIMO being both provider of mining licenses and at the same time having a financial interest implies a concentration of power that can create conflicts of interest and invite corruption. The allocation of payments to the state raises concerns as well as the agreements regarding development projects or, for example, accountability for environmental destruction. Finansinspektionen, the Swedish financial regulator, and Aktietorget, the Swedish market where Mineral Invest is publicly traded, have insufficient regulation and guidance for companies operating in difficult or post-conflict countries. Mineral Invest has not worked out an agreement, often called a social license to operate, with members of the local community where it operates. The company has contracted a unit of the Congolese military to provide security. This unit has been implicated in the ethnic slaughter of pygmies and cannibalism. The soldiers have also been accused of extorting gold from miners. Details: Stockholm: Diakonia; SwedWatch, 2012. 55p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 17, 2016 at: http://www.diakonia.se/globalassets/documents/diakonia/publications/reports/2012-a-lot-of-gold-a-lot-of-trouble.pdf?_t_id=1B2M2Y8AsgTpgAmY7PhCfg%3d%3d&_t_q=a+lot+of+gold&_t_tags=language%3aen%2csiteid%3adfed4c1a-bbd8-450f-954a-02cff1abcc09&_t_ip=165.230.70.227&_t_hit.id=Diakonia_Web_Models_Media_GenericMedia/_4baca66d-47cc-4b18-83eb-3ca74a73271b&_t_hit.pos=1 Year: 2012 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://www.diakonia.se/globalassets/documents/diakonia/publications/reports/2012-a-lot-of-gold-a-lot-of-trouble.pdf?_t_id=1B2M2Y8AsgTpgAmY7PhCfg%3d%3d&_t_q=a+lot+of+gold&_t_tags=language%3aen%2csiteid%3adfed4c1a-bbd8-450f-954 Shelf Number: 145097 Keywords: Conflict MineralsConflict MiningGold MiningIllegal MiningMining IndustryNatural Resources |
Author: Obale, Offah Title: From Conflict to Illicit: Mapping the Diamond Trade from Central African Republic to Cameroon Summary: The Central African Republic (CAR) is the only source of traditionally defined conflict diamonds in the world today. Since May 2013, exports of its diamonds have been under international embargo by both the United Nations and the Kimberley Process (KP), the initiative that regulates the production and trade of rough diamonds. CAR was suspended from the KP after a March 2013 coup d'état that sparked widespread civil unrest in the country. The coup was the inevitable outcome of years of political instability forged by a coalition of rebel groups, known as Seleka, who attacked the government and incrementally seized territory, including the strategic diamond-mining town of Bria. On March 24, 2013 Séléka captured the capital city of Bangui and overthrew the government, initiating a bitter internal conflict that continues to fester to this day. The civil war and regime change forced the United Nations and the international community to impose economic sanctions on CAR. Not only were all diamond exports prohibited, the KP urged diamond-trading countries to exercise enhanced vigilance and ensure that diamonds produced in CAR were seized and not allowed to circulate in legitimate trade. While the ban on CAR’s exports was partially lifted in 2016 from regions deemed to be KP compliant, that has not stopped the flow of CAR's conflict diamonds to international markets—while it was under full embargo or regions still prevented from trading today. This report examines the smuggling of diamonds from the Central African Republic into Cameroon. Further, it focuses on the impact this illicit trade has on Cameroon’s internal controls as well as the broader integrity of the diamond supply chain. The report describes the methods used and the key actors involved in this illicit trade. It concludes that the KP and frontline countries like Cameroon need to do more to interrupt the illicit trade of conflict diamonds from CAR and support each other in taking action. Details: Ottawa: Partnership Africa Canada, 2016. 36p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 2, 2016 at: http://pacweb.org/images/PUBLICATIONS/from-conflict-to-ilicit-eng-web.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Africa URL: http://pacweb.org/images/PUBLICATIONS/from-conflict-to-ilicit-eng-web.pdf Shelf Number: 147323 Keywords: Conflict DiamondsConflict MineralsDiamondsIllegal TradeIllicit TradeSmuggling |
Author: Awazi, Alain Title: Trafficking of Gold and and Coltan in the Democratic Republic of Congo Summary: Following a dictatorship that lasted for 30 years, in May 1997, the late MOBUTU SESE SEKO was pushed out of power by Laurent Desire KABILA, with the support of The Alliance of Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Congo-Zaire ("AFDL") rebels and neighboring countries following a war that caused several hundred thousand deaths. Zaire became the "Democratic Republic of the Congo" (DRC), beginning a long period of instability dominated by armed conflicts from various rival groups, which profoundly affected the economy. It is unanimously agreed that economic motives, directly related to exploitation and traffic of mineral in East of the country, have been a substantial cause of those conflicts. The purpose of this short descriptive document is to present relevant background information about the Democratic Republic of the Congo ("DRC" or "DR Congo") and the criminal or illegal exploitation of coltan and gold. The document consists of eight parts: The introductory first part is followed by a second part that includes a background on the DR Congo; the third part is a description of the socio-political and economic situation of the country; the fourth part includes relevant information regarding crimes and human rights violations in DRC; the fifth part is a description of trafficking in Kivu; the sixth part describes the situation of law enforcement around the exploitation; the seventh covers current and active mechanism for regulating the extraction and production of minerals and the eighth section presents some conclusions. Details: Bogotá, Colombia: Vortex Foundation, 2016. 17p. Source: Internet Resource: The Global Observatory of Transnational Criminal Networks: Research Paper No. 3. VORTEX Working Papers No. 14: Accessed January 26, 2017 at: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_f2a86e46cc1040b78d9867291bd87bca.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_f2a86e46cc1040b78d9867291bd87bca.pdf Shelf Number: 145434 Keywords: Conflict MineralsIllegal MiningMining IndustryNatural ResourcesTrafficking in Natural Resources |
Author: Lopez Guevara, Estefania Title: Illegal Mining and Trafficking of Coltan in the Amazon Border Region Summary: The illegal mining of coltan takes place not only in Colombia, but also in the border region between Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil. Unlicensed miners, supported by guerrillas and hidden by authorities from Colombia, Venezuela and Brazil, exploit the mines and coerce indigenous peoples into mining labors in the Amazonas where it is presumed that there are deposits of columbite and tantalite inside native's reserves or natural parks. Bearing this in mind, the purpose of this document is to describe the illegal mining and trafficking of coltan in the Amazon border region. The information is structured around the following topics and sections: (i) Key criminal agents relevant in trafficking of coltan, (ii) key criminal hotspots related to trafficking of coltan, (iii) and a description of recent relevant cases. Details: Bogota, Colombia: Vortex Foundation, 2016. 14p. Source: Internet Resource: Internet Resource: The Global Observatory of Transnational Criminal Networks: Research Paper No. 2. VORTEX Working Papers: Accessed January 26, 2017: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_bdea3889f6994097adeb2cab13f92ab9.pdf Year: 2016 Country: South America URL: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_bdea3889f6994097adeb2cab13f92ab9.pdf Shelf Number: 144868 Keywords: Conflict Minerals Illegal Mining Mining Industry Natural Resources Trafficking in Natural Resources |
Author: Lopez Guevara, Estefania Title: Coltan Trafficking Network in the Democratic Republic of Congo Summary: Trafficking of Coltan is the main economic, social and political source of instability in The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and surrounding countries, including Rwanda and Burundi. The illegal market of the ore has roots in transnational and domestic corruption, financial support to armed groups, violation of workers' rights, multinationals collusion, instability of international prices minerals and lack of diversification. Armed groups earn hundreds of millions of dollars every year by trading coltan that is smuggled out of Congo throughout neighboring countries and then shipped to smelters for refinement. Once the coltan is processed, it is difficult to trace its origin, so it easily makes its way all over the world, mainly, in electronic products. The sophisticated trafficking system of coltan is based on elite networks that operate mainly in DRC, linked to transnational organized crime and also to transnational lawful agents, such as corporations. Several lawful and unlawful agents conform each network. In fact, it has been reported that there is - competition between corrupt generals and rebels. In the case of the militia groups profits go on buying arms on the black market. With the generals, some [profits] go on arms, but lots of it goes on luxury things like villas. The profits are funding the war for everyone - both sides. It's a self-supporting war. (France 24, 2008) This document is the analysis of a criminal network traffics coltan, diamonds, arms, gold, and other minerals and commodities across the DRC and surrounding countries. The document has five parts: The first part is an introduction; the second part is a description of the methodology and the concepts related to Social Network Analysis, which is the methodological approach herein applied; the third part is a presentation of a criminal network defined as a "coltan trafficking and elite network in DRC", as well as the sources gathered and processed in this analysis; the fourth part is a presentation of the characteristics of the criminal structure, which includes a description of the types of nodes/agents, the interactions established, and the nodes/agents concentrating direct interactions and the capacity to arbitrate resources. The fifth part includes conclusions related to the characteristics the analyzed network. Details: Bogotá, Colombia: Vortex Foundation, 2016. 39p. Source: Internet Resource: The Global Observatory of Transnational Criminal Networks: Research Paper No. 19. VORTEX Working Papers no. 14: Accessed January 27, 2017 at: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_f0896eb2340e4941bdd0de3f52e3bc65.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_f0896eb2340e4941bdd0de3f52e3bc65.pdf Shelf Number: 145815 Keywords: Conflict MineralsCriminal NetworksIllegal MiningMining IndustryNatural ResourcesOrganized CrimeTrafficking in Natural Resources |
Author: Lopez Guevara, Estefania Title: Trafficking of Coltan in the Democratic Republic of Congo Summary: The subjects analyzed in the document are the commerce, fraud, and contraband, as well as mechanisms and agents at internal and external levels intervening in the trafficking of coltan. This document also examines the (i) key criminal agents and other activities relating to the traffic of the ore, (ii) hotspots and (iii) recent cases covered by media. Details: Bogota, Colombia: Vortex, 2016. 27p. Source: Internet Resource: Research Paper No. 4.: Accessed February 24, 2017 at: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_bee14894ac2a4354a2ae49710c88bdd0.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Congo, Democratic Republic URL: http://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/522e46_bee14894ac2a4354a2ae49710c88bdd0.pdf Shelf Number: 141218 Keywords: Conflict MineralsCriminal NetworksIllegal MiningMining IndustryNatural ResourcesOrganized CrimeTrafficking in Natural Resources |