The Exploitation of Congolese Minerals

Background:
For months, a rebel group led by General Laurent Nkunda has terrorized civilians of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, causing the displacement of over 250,000 people. Unfortunately, Nkunda was fighting under the false pretext of protecting the Congolese Tutsis who were targeted in the recent Rwandan genocide. For that reason, persecution of the rebel group has been delayed. Yet, after much speculation and investigation the United Nations finally came out with a report on December 12th 2008 detailing the main actors sponsoring the violence.

Business Corruption:

The businessmen of Rwanda personify the soulless businessman image because they are the ones funding the rebels with money to buy the sophisticated weaponry that make them so deadly. These businessmen are interested in the Congo's vast supply of mineral resources. In order to gain a monopoly, the business men require the rebels to negotiate for the removal of foreign actors like China from the Congolese mineral market.


Greed That Kills:

To the Rwandan businessmen, the precious minerals are more valuable than the lives of the civilians. This is just another case of “blood minerals” that has gone unnoticed for too long. The international community has the obligation to step up and stem the problem at its business roots. Countries or businesses that import cobalt or zinc from the Congo should ensure that these minerals are conflict free.