Congo's Mines Fules Its Internal Wars

A map locating the province of North Kivu. Foreign ministers from France and Britain have held crisis talks with Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) president Joseph Kabila in a diplomatic push to halt a rebel advance and looming humanitarian disaster in the east of the country. (AFP/Graphic/Gil)

Mining For Minerals Fuels Congo Conflict -- Yahoo News/AP

LONDON – The conflict in eastern Congo is being fueled and funded by a tussle for mineral resources that end up in cell phones, laptops and other electronics — deepening the stakes in a war that sprung out of festering hatreds from the Rwandan genocide.

Rebel militias and Congolese army troops are fighting each other for control of mineral-rich land. They can then sell the raw materials they mine and use the proceeds to fund their activities and arms — which prolongs the conflict.

"The links are very clear between the mining activity going to finance these groups, and these armed groups we know have been benefiting financially from the mining areas," said Lizzie Parsons, a member of the Congo team at London-based Global Witness, a non-governmental organization that investigates natural resource exploitation.

Read more ....

My Comment: The greed of Congolese leaders and their foreign partners is unbelievable.