A Call to Arms - demand for Coltan causes problems in Congo - Industry Trend or Event

Industry Standard, The, June 11, 2001 by Kristi Essick, Mark Boslet, Boris Grondahl

With that kind of uncertainty creeping into public view, some high-tech manufacturers are worried that Congolese coltan will tarnish their reputations. Ericsson says it requires its suppliers to comply with company environmental, ethical and human-rights policies. "We are putting demands in place and will follow it up," says Mats Pellback-Scharp, environmental manager of consumer products. Meanwhile, Kemet says it will start requiring ore suppliers to certify that their tantalum does not come from the Congo, Rwanda, Burundi or Uganda. "If everybody takes a stance, maybe it will dry up," says Kemet's Crowley.

For its part, Intel has begun a review to determine the source of the tantalum it uses. "We'd like to be able to know the answer," says spokesman Chuck Mulloy. Compaq has issued a statement saying it "condemns the reported activities of illegal miners in the Kahuzi-Biega National Park and the Okapi Wildlife Re serve in the Democratic Republic of Congo." But, as spokesman Arch Currid says, "Most of the components that we get [come] from third-party providers, so where they get their raw goods is hard to determine."

Motorola also says it has asked its suppliers to ensure that no rebel-generated Congolese tantalum comes to them. "We deplore the activities alleged against illegal miners in the environmentally protected region of the Congo and fully support the efforts of relevant authorities to protect regions where the environment or wildlife is threatened" says the company. Hewlett-Packard officials also denounce the situation in the Congo and say the company intends to work with the Electronic Industries Alliance to ensure no tainted tantalum ends up in HP products.

Other high-tech companies such as AMD, Dell, PMC Sierra and Solectron were unable to provide procurement guidelines or did not return calls seeking comment.

THE FIGHT FOR AN EMBARGO

The U.N. report calls for much more than guidelines. It proposes an all-out trade embargo on the import and export of coltan and other minerals from or to Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda "until those countries' involvement in the exploitation of the natural resources of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is made clear and declared so by the Security Council."

Trade groups, notably the TIC, say that would be unfair to the legitimate trading companies that do business in the region. "There have been exports from Zaire/Congo for 40 years," says the TIC's Wickens. "If there is an embargo, this will carry off the legitimate as well as illegitimate mining."

But given the problems in policing the coltan trade, Baldo of Human Rights Watch believes only an embargo will begin to reverse the tide of abuse in the Congo. "I would encourage the U.N. Security Council to adopt an embargo against Rwanda and Uganda, because they rely on international assistance," says Baldo. Sanctions imposed by foreign governments could thus have an immediate effect in the region. Rwandan and Ugandan rebels "are exploiting resources illegally and know sooner or later this will become unacceptable," add Baldo.