Pledge to Stop Atrocities in Congo

'Conflict minerals' that electronics manufacturers buy are fueling worst war conditions since World War II.

The United Methodist General Board of Church & Society (GBCS) is among the organizational endorsers of pledges to discourage manufacturers from using in their products minerals from the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. The conflict in eastern Congo is being fueled by a multi-million dollar trade in minerals that go into electronic products from cell phones to digital cameras.

More than five million people have died as a result, and hundreds of thousands of women have been raped in eastern Congo over the past decade. Armed groups perpetuating the violence generate an estimated $144 million each year by trading in four main minerals: gold, tin, tantalum (coltan) and tungsten.

Electronics companies are powerful actors in their supply chains, according to the Enough Project to end genocide. Enough contends that if these manufacturers show leadership, they can fundamentally change the way conflict minerals are bought and sold. They could ensure that the minerals don’t contribute to armed conflict and the continuation of the worst violence against women and girls in the world.

The Enough Project has worked with other like-minded groups to begin the conversation with the 21 largest electronics companies and create a conflict minerals pledge that commits electronics companies to ensure their products are conflict-free. A coalition of 32 organizations, including human rights, labor, environmental, conflict resolution, consumer advocacy, conservation, fair trade, faith-based, and other advocacy groups, sent a letter outlining their concerns to the 21 largest consumer electronics companies. GBCS signed that letter.
Following that effort, Enough and partners created a two-pronged pledge that commits electronics companies to ensure their products are conflict-free.

Besides GBCS, other endorser organizations include Jewish World Watch, African Conservation Foundation, Investors Against Genocide, Ecomom Alliance, Stand and Gesellschaft für Bedrohte Völker.

Corporate Pledge
By signing the “Conflict Minerals Pledge,” a company commits to ensuring that its products will be conflict-free.

It pledges to:

• trace the supply chain for all tin, tantalum, tungsten or gold in their products to verify their mines of origin; and
• conduct independently verifiable supply chain audits to document the routes taken, intermediaries involved, and transactions made from mine of origin to final product.

The Enough Project and its partners will work with companies that sign the pledge to help them fulfill their commitments. They will support efforts to provide companies with definitive guidance from the United Nations, the U.S. government, and expert sources on conflict actors and areas of concern in eastern Congo.

Any company that would like to learn more or sign on to the pledge, send an e-mail to conflictminerals@eoughproject.org.

Activist Pledge - By endorsing the Conflict Minerals Pledge, organizations and individuals commit to using their voices and consumer power to influence companies to sign the pledge. Specifically, they will:

• 
  contact the largest makers of cell phones, portable music players, digital cameras, PC’s, and video games, and urge them to sign the pledge;
• commit to only purchasing electronics from firms that have taken and are abiding by the conflict minerals pledge; and
• educate fellow consumers and activists about the crisis in Congo, the role of conflict minerals, and how they can be a part of the solution.
  

More information about the conflict mineral situation is available at Raise Hope for Congo. The website provides information about what you can do to help end the trade in conflict minerals that is fueling the war in Congo, and to protect and empower Congo’s women.

The situation in the Congo is dire! Please act now by signing the pledge and recruiting others to do so as well!

Mark HarrisonDirector of Peace with Justice Program