WHAT IS CONFLICT MINING ?
Conflict minerals are minerals mined in conditions of armed conflict and human rights abuses, notably in the eastern provinces of theDemocratic Republic of the Congo, by the Congolese National Army, and various armed rebel groups, including the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and the National Congress for the Defense of the People (CNDP), a proxy Rwandan militia group. The looting of the Congo's natural resources is not limited to domestic actors; during the Congo Wars, Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi particularly profited from the Congo's resources. These governments have continued to smuggle resources out of the Congo to this day. The profits from the sale of these minerals finance continued fighting in the Second Congo War, and control of lucrative mines becomes a focus of the fighting as well. The most commonly mined minerals are cassiterite, wolframite, coltan, and gold, which are extracted from the Eastern Congo, and passed through a variety of intermediaries before being purchased by multinational electronics companies.
These minerals are essential in the manufacture of a variety of devices, including consumer electronics such as mobile phones, laptops, and MP3 players.
These minerals are essential in the manufacture of a variety of devices, including consumer electronics such as mobile phones, laptops, and MP3 players.
What are the Types of Conflict Minerals and Their Uses?
- Currently, the list consists of only four minerals that are use in the ICT industry. These are sometimes referred to as "3TG":
- Columbite-tantalite/ Coltan is the metal ore from which the element tantalum is extracted. Tantalum is used primarily for the production of applications requiring high performance, a small compact format and high reliability. These includes :capacitors, hearing aids, airbags,GPS,ignition systems and anti-lock braking systems in automobiles, through to laptop computers, mobile phones, video game consoles, video cameras and digital cameras.
- Cassiterite is the chief ore needed to produce tin. Tin is essential for the production of tin cans and solder on the circuit boards of electronic equipment.
- Wolframite is an important source of the element tungsten. Tungsten is a very dense metal and possesses hardness and wear resistance properties and is frequently used in applications like metalworking tools, drill bits and milling used for this property, fishing weights, dart tips and golf club heads. Minimal amounts are used in electronic devices, including the vibration mechanism of cell phones.
- Gold is used in jewelry, electronics, and dental products. It is also present in some chemical compounds used in certain semiconductor manufacturing processes.
How Conflict Mining Affect the World?
Conflict minerals affect every aspect of the society they are mined in.Ways how conflict mining affect the world are :
- Separation of Fathers from families
- Quality and availability of education become compromised or wiped out entirely
- Gender-based issues like basic inequality become horrific problems like mass rape
- Child labor becomes common
- Healthcare disappears in the country which conflict mining occur
- Makes poverty increases and the environmental impact often detrimental is rarely even measured.
What Can Be Done To Stop Conflicting Mining?
- Introduce new legislation to require companies to disclose any use of minerals used from the war-torn country.
- Form groups to discourage the practice of exploiting countries with the required minerals.
- Request conflict free products from technological companies.
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