Eye on Africa

****Photo Jeca Taudte — Coltan Processing, Bukavu, South Kivu

Bukavu is perched high above Lake Kivu, gently encroaching on the placid body of water between Rwanda and Congo. Once known as the pearl of Congo because of its beautiful climate and mountains, the Bukavu I found last summer barely resembles the famed city I heard about as a child.

In the past ten years, South Kivu province and its capital city of Bukavu have been known for two things: insecurity and coltan. I came for both. In anticipation of the country’s first multiparty elections in four decades, I wanted to understand the potential effect of insecurity on the elections and learn first-hand the role minerals such as coltan play in fueling insecurity.

Four times the size of France, and as big as the United States east of the Mississippi river, Congo holds 80 percent of the world’s reserves of coltan, a heat-resistant mineral ore widely used in cellular phones, laptop computers and video games. The ore derives its name from a contraction of columbium-tantalite, the scientific nomenclature.

***Photo Mvemba Phezo Dizolele — Pakistani Peacekeepers Praying, Tubimbi, South Kivu

July 23, 2007 
 
Mr. Jean-Marie Guéhenno 
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations 
Department of Peacekeeping Operations 
United Nations 
New York, NY 
 

We welcome your recent announcement about the conclusion of the Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) investigation into alleged gold smuggling and arms trading by Pakistani peacekeepers working with the UN peacekeeping force in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). We believe that such investigations are a useful part of the process of establishing accountability for peacekeepers alleged to have been involved in illegal acts.

***Photo Mvemba Phezo Dizolele. Coltan miners, South Kivu

In an opinion piece published in The Boston Globe on Deember 22, author John le Carré and International Crisis Group’s analyst Jason Stearns wrote:

"The World Bank sees the mining sector as the driving force behind Congo’s economy. It has helped publish a new mining code, has commissioned several audits of the largest state mining company, and has given $45 million to retire 10,000 state mining workers. The theory is that Congo needs to privatize its stagnant state mining companies in order to revive the industry. Once the mines are up to speed again, the state should be able to make ample revenue through taxing exports and profits.

***Photo Mvemba Phezo Dizolele. Coltan and Cassiterite miners in Mushangi, South Kivu.

Events in war-torn Congo may seem remote, but they are no further than your cellphone or DVD player. Eastern Congo supplies 80% of the world’s coltan, a mineral essential to electronic goods. Last summer I traveled to the mines of South Kivu to see who has benefited from the coltan trade and who has paid the price. Watch the film

***Photo Mvemba Phezo Dizolele. Coltan miner in Mushangi, South Kivu.

***Photo Mvemba Phezo Dizolele. Coltan mining in Mushangi, South Kivu.

The Mushangi area is nested high in eastern Congo’s mountains, far from the capital, Kinshasa, on the border with Rwanda. The hills are barren, stripped of their lush vegetation both by erosion and by a seemingly never-ending conflict. While the rest of Congo prepares for the second round of presidential elections scheduled for Oct. 29, the people of Mushangi worry about one thing: survival.