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Tuesday, December 17, 2024 1:52:18 PM
Apple accused of using conflict minerals
Related: Clashes in east DR Congo day after aborted peace summit
2013 - "US blocks military aid to Rwanda over alleged backing of M23 child soldiers
Rwandan government condemns sanctions, which also apply to Burma, Central African Republic, Sudan and Syria
[...]Marie Harf, a state department spokesperson, added that Rwanda was sanctioned because of its "support for the M23, a rebel group which continues to actively recruit and abduct children" and to threaten the stability of DRC.
P - Rwanda will not receive US international military education and training funds, which help train foreign militaries, nor US foreign military financing, which funds the sale of American military material and services, Harf explained.
P - The US has had close military ties with Rwanda since president Paul Kagame .. http://www.theguardian.com/world/paul-kagame 's Rwandan Patriotic Front came to power after the 1994 genocide. The country's army is regarded as one the most disciplined and efficient in the region.
P - The M23, which accuses the Congolese government of failing to honour a 2009 peace deal, is fighting the Congolese army and a UN intervention brigade near the Rwandan border. In July, Human Rights Watch said it had documented dozens of cases of forced recruitment by M23 forces .. http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/22/dr-congo-m23-rebels-kill-rape-civilians .. since March, including of children."
Issued on: 17/12/2024 - 12:43Modified: 17/12/2024 - 13:23
Video by: Clément DI ROMA
The congolese army lost more territory to M23 rebels they have been battling in the East. The Rwanda backed militia have displaced thousands since its resurgence in 2021 and reportedly forced soldiers into retreat after siesing the town of Matembe in North Kivo. The latest clashes followed the cancellation on Sunday of a crucial peace summit about the conflict. FRANCE 24 correspondent, Clement Di Roma has more.
https://www.france24.com/en/video/20241217-clashes-in-east-dr-congo-day-after-aborted-peace-summit
Apple accused of using conflict minerals
5 hours ago
Will Ross & Damian Zane
BBC News
The mineral-rich east of DR Congo has seen years of conflict often fuelled by what lies underneath the ground AFP
The Democratic Republic of Congo has filed criminal complaints in France and Belgium against subsidiaries of the tech giant Apple, accusing it of using conflict minerals.
Acting on behalf of the Congolese government, lawyers have argued that Apple is complicit in crimes committed by armed groups that control some of the mines in the east of DR Congo.
In its 2023 review of the issue, Apple said it monitors its supply chain and works to mitigate risks as well as improving measures to trace the source of minerals.
The authorities in France and Belgium will now look at whether there is enough evidence to take the legal action further.
In a statement, the lawyers for the DR Congo talked about Apple's supply chain being contaminated with "blood minerals".
They allege that the tin, tantalum and tungsten is taken from conflict areas and then "laundered through international supply chains".
"These activities have fuelled a cycle of violence and conflict by financing militias and terrorist groups and have contributed to forced child labour and environmental devastation."
Apple has not responded to a BBC request for comment, but in its report to the US Securities and Exchange Commission detailing its actions on this issue in 2023, the company highlights the measures it has taken to ensure that it is not using conflict minerals.
"Although Apple does not directly purchase, procure, or source primary minerals, we are committed to meeting and exceeding internationally accepted due diligence standards for primary minerals and recycled materials in our supply chain," it said.
As a result, all those involved in the supply chain have to participate in an "independent third-party conflict minerals audit". Apple said that in 2023 it removed 14 "smelters and refiners" that would not participate or did not meet the requirements for responsible sourcing.
The east of DR Congo is a major source of minerals and the global thirst for them has fuelled wars there for decades.
Rights groups have long alleged that large quantities of minerals from legitimate mines, as well as from facilities run by armed groups, are transported to neighbouring Rwanda and end up in our phones and computers.
Rwanda has in the past described the Congolese government's legal action against Apple as a media stunt.
It has denied selling any conflict minerals to the tech company.
You may also be interested in:
* We would vote for peace - if we had a vote'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-67681710
* Refugees fleeing M23 rebels say they ‘feel powerless’
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-africa-68350274
A quick guide to DR Congo
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13283212
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn8g540wz3jo
Related: Clashes in east DR Congo day after aborted peace summit
2013 - "US blocks military aid to Rwanda over alleged backing of M23 child soldiers
Rwandan government condemns sanctions, which also apply to Burma, Central African Republic, Sudan and Syria
[...]Marie Harf, a state department spokesperson, added that Rwanda was sanctioned because of its "support for the M23, a rebel group which continues to actively recruit and abduct children" and to threaten the stability of DRC.
P - Rwanda will not receive US international military education and training funds, which help train foreign militaries, nor US foreign military financing, which funds the sale of American military material and services, Harf explained.
P - The US has had close military ties with Rwanda since president Paul Kagame .. http://www.theguardian.com/world/paul-kagame 's Rwandan Patriotic Front came to power after the 1994 genocide. The country's army is regarded as one the most disciplined and efficient in the region.
P - The M23, which accuses the Congolese government of failing to honour a 2009 peace deal, is fighting the Congolese army and a UN intervention brigade near the Rwandan border. In July, Human Rights Watch said it had documented dozens of cases of forced recruitment by M23 forces .. http://www.hrw.org/news/2013/07/22/dr-congo-m23-rebels-kill-rape-civilians .. since March, including of children."
Issued on: 17/12/2024 - 12:43Modified: 17/12/2024 - 13:23
Video by: Clément DI ROMA
The congolese army lost more territory to M23 rebels they have been battling in the East. The Rwanda backed militia have displaced thousands since its resurgence in 2021 and reportedly forced soldiers into retreat after siesing the town of Matembe in North Kivo. The latest clashes followed the cancellation on Sunday of a crucial peace summit about the conflict. FRANCE 24 correspondent, Clement Di Roma has more.
https://www.france24.com/en/video/20241217-clashes-in-east-dr-congo-day-after-aborted-peace-summit
Apple accused of using conflict minerals
5 hours ago
Will Ross & Damian Zane
BBC News
The mineral-rich east of DR Congo has seen years of conflict often fuelled by what lies underneath the ground AFP
The Democratic Republic of Congo has filed criminal complaints in France and Belgium against subsidiaries of the tech giant Apple, accusing it of using conflict minerals.
Acting on behalf of the Congolese government, lawyers have argued that Apple is complicit in crimes committed by armed groups that control some of the mines in the east of DR Congo.
In its 2023 review of the issue, Apple said it monitors its supply chain and works to mitigate risks as well as improving measures to trace the source of minerals.
The authorities in France and Belgium will now look at whether there is enough evidence to take the legal action further.
In a statement, the lawyers for the DR Congo talked about Apple's supply chain being contaminated with "blood minerals".
They allege that the tin, tantalum and tungsten is taken from conflict areas and then "laundered through international supply chains".
"These activities have fuelled a cycle of violence and conflict by financing militias and terrorist groups and have contributed to forced child labour and environmental devastation."
Apple has not responded to a BBC request for comment, but in its report to the US Securities and Exchange Commission detailing its actions on this issue in 2023, the company highlights the measures it has taken to ensure that it is not using conflict minerals.
"Although Apple does not directly purchase, procure, or source primary minerals, we are committed to meeting and exceeding internationally accepted due diligence standards for primary minerals and recycled materials in our supply chain," it said.
As a result, all those involved in the supply chain have to participate in an "independent third-party conflict minerals audit". Apple said that in 2023 it removed 14 "smelters and refiners" that would not participate or did not meet the requirements for responsible sourcing.
The east of DR Congo is a major source of minerals and the global thirst for them has fuelled wars there for decades.
Rights groups have long alleged that large quantities of minerals from legitimate mines, as well as from facilities run by armed groups, are transported to neighbouring Rwanda and end up in our phones and computers.
Rwanda has in the past described the Congolese government's legal action against Apple as a media stunt.
It has denied selling any conflict minerals to the tech company.
You may also be interested in:
* We would vote for peace - if we had a vote'
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-67681710
* Refugees fleeing M23 rebels say they ‘feel powerless’
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/av/world-africa-68350274
A quick guide to DR Congo
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-13283212
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn8g540wz3jo
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