Capitalism has killed over 10 million of our people in the Congo in order to steal a resource called coltan. There is no publicity about this genocide that is being waged and it is the Silicon Valley that is reaping the benefits of the murder of our people. The masses of African people do not benefit and African people must create a situation in which the theft of our resources and the murder of our people will not be tolerated. We are calling on our young people to go to San Jose State s (college in the Silicon Valley ) Black Student Union and start a movement to protest this situation until these crimes are stopped. The ultimate solution is the Unification of Africa. We must also join in the protest with the indigenous people of this land against the deportation of the native people. this is very urgent and we need to move on this as if our lives depend on it, because our lives do depend on it. We must go to all the BSUs in the Bay Area and educate them about the situation in the Congo . A very important part of the education is that we must first see ourselves as Africans. If we see ourselves as Africans we must build a movement that is against the genocide going on in the Congo . We must go to the BSUS at Laney, Alameda college, Merritt college, Mills college, San Francisco State , UC Berkeley, Contra Costa college, Berkeley city college, etc. and eventually go to the colleges all over that state of California and build a movement against the genocide in the Congo . We must also ask all these student organizations to be in an the organization Youth for the Unification of Africa. We must also invite all these organizations to our conference on May 24th and ask them to speak on our How to build a Youth Movement panel. please let me know and I am asking all the young people in our crew to do this assignment together. Please let me know if anyone is interested in this work. There is no media that is doing this work so we have to be our own media. It is our goal to organize all women’s organization into an umbrella organization called “Women for the Unification of Africa.” We want to organize all the youth organizations in an umbrella organization called “Youth for the Unification of Africa.” We want to organize the men into an organization called “Men for the Emancipation of Women and the Unification of Africa.” We want to organize a political party called “Political Party for the Unification of Africa.” We want to organize these 4 organizations in every single country in Africa . We would also like to register these organizations in every country in Africa . We are determined to make a serious contribution to the Unification of Africa and we are asking for your help. Coltan (short for columbite–tantalite and known industrially as tantalite) is a dull black metallic ore from which the elements niobium and tantalum are extracted. The niobium-dominant mineral in coltan is columbite (after niobiums original American name, columbium), and the tantalum-dominant mineral is tantalite.[1] Tantalum from coltan is used to manufacture tantalum capacitors, used in electronic products. Coltan mining has been cited[2][3] as helping to finance serious conflict, for example the Ituri conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.[4][5 Coltan is used primarily for the production of tantalum capacitors, used in many electronic devices. Many sources mention coltans importance in the production of cell phones, but this is an over-simplification, as tantalum capacitors are used in almost every kind of electronic device. Resource Curse[edit] Main Page: Resource Curse Countries rich in resources such as Congo have been affected by the phenomenon referred to as “resource curse”.[17] “Resource curse” is used to describe the situation when countries that are rich in resources have poorer economic development than countries that have fewer resources.[17] This phenomenon does not allow for the Congolese to have a balanced and sustained development. It also indicates that there is a clear relationship between the wealth of resources “…and the likelihood of weak democratic development, corruption, and civil war.”[17] Such high levels of corruption lead to great political instability and issues because whoever controls the assets (mainly the political leaders, and the government in Congo ) can use it to their benefit. These resources can generate wealth for these people which can be used to keep “…themselves in power, either through legal means, or coercive ones (e.g. funding militias)”.[18] The beginning of coltan as an important mineral, crucial to technological products “occurred as warlords and armies in the eastern Congo converted artisanal mining operations…into slave labour regimes to earn hard currency to finance their militia Digital Age[edit] Main article: Information Age Coltan is made into a component for many digital products such as cell phones. The digital age has caused issues regarding power relations and violence between individuals from the Congo and the rest of the world. An example of uneven power relations was in late 2000, when there was a great demand for the PlayStation 2. This demand caused the price of coltan to increase very quickly and after demand for the gaming system fell, so did the price of coltan.[20] The price hike of coltan had made the violence in eastern Congo a lot worse, as the violence was being directed at everyday social production.[20] Since there is a growing need for new technologies, the demand for coltan is growing substantially Mining[edit] For individuals living within the Congo , mining is the easiest source of income available, as the work is consistent and regular, even if just for $1/day.[20] However, coltan is laborious to mine, as it takes around “three day’s march into the forests to scratch out the ore with hand tools and pan it … about 90 per cent of young men are doing this now…”.[21] Research conducted by anthropologists has revealed reasons as to why the Congolese leave the farming industry. Congolese individuals can try to work in places like farms, but they need money quickly and cannot wait for their crops to grow. As farmers, they face other obstacles as well. There are no roads for people to travel on, making it extremely difficult for them to get their produce to rural markets, and they have a high chance of their harvest being taken by militias and the Congolese army.[20] Once their food is taken away or they no longer have the capacity to grow food, they need to resort to mining in order to sustain themselves and provide for families. The organized mines however, are usually run by corrupt groups like militias. There are few tools available for the Congolese to efficiently mine for coltan, with no safety procedures or past experience working in mines.[19] There is no government aid or intervention in many unethical and abusive circumstances. Coltan mining is viewed by miners as a way of providing for themselves in an area where war and internal conflict are widespread and the government has no concern for citizens welfare.[22 Ethics of mining in the Democratic Republic of Congo[edit] See also: Coltan mining and ethics Conflicts, including the Rwandan occupation in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), made it difficult for the DRC to exploit its coltan reserves. Mining of the mineral is mainly artisanal and small-scale.[23] A 2003 UN Security Council report[24] charged that a great deal of the ore is mined illegally and smuggled over the countrys eastern borders by militias from neighbouring Uganda, Burundi and Rwanda.[25] All three countries named by the United Nations as smugglers of coltan have denied being involved. Austrian journalist Klaus Werner has documented links between multi-national companies like Bayer and the illegal coltan traffic.[26] A United Nations committee investigating the plunder of gems and minerals in the Congo listed in its final report[24] approximately 125 companies and individuals involved in business activities breaching international norms. Companies accused of irresponsible corporate behavior are for example the Cabot Corporation,[27] Eagle Wings Resources International[28] Forrest Group[29] and OM Group.[30] Coltan smuggling likely provides income for the military occupation of Congo[citation needed], as well as prolonged civil conflict. To many[who?], this raises ethical questions akin to those of blood diamonds. Owing to the difficulty of distinguishing legitimate from illegitimate mining operations, several processors such as Cabot Corp (USA) have decided to forgo central African coltan altogether, relying on other sources.[citation needed] Much coltan from the DRC is being exported to China for processing into electronic-grade tantalum powder and wires.[31] Estimates of the Congo s fraction of the worlds coltan reserves range from 64% and up.[32] Tantalum, the primary mineral extracted from Coltan, is also mined from other sources, and Congolese coltan represented around 10% of world production in recent years.[33][34] Environmental concerns[edit] Because of uncontrolled mining in the DRC, the land is being eroded and is polluting lakes and rivers, affecting the ecology of the region[citation needed]. The Eastern Mountain Gorillas population has diminished as well. Miners are far from food sources and have been hunting gorillas.[35] The gorilla population has been seriously reduced and is now critically endangered. In Central and West Africa an estimated 3–5 million tons of bushmeat is obtained by killing wild animals (including gorillas) each year.[36]
Posted on: Mon, 14 Apr 2014 16:30:46 +0000
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