When the West became aware of the issue of blood diamonds via a Hollywood movie, people finally took action, and the Kimberley Process was created to attempt to stop the trading of illegal diamonds.  Although this has only been marginally successful, it has, at least, brought awareness to the African and South American countries that have been suffering so that Westerners could wear big jewels.  With the trial of former Liberian President Charles Taylor and possible UN sanctions against the Mugabe-run Zimbabwe government, changes are coming, although they have been altogether too slow for not only the people suffering at the hands of money-hungry dictators, but also for some of the original creators of the Kimberley Process.  Ian Smillie, one of the original creators of the KPCS, left the organization when he realized that it was not accomplishing what it set out to do.

Now there is a new type of criminal emerging through the vast loopholes in the Kimberley Process: traders in “conflict minerals”.  The KPCS touches only on the specific topic of diamonds, making no mention of the travesties that occur for the collection of certain valuable minerals. 

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, violence has skyrocketed since the beginning of 2009.  Not only are rebels after the gold that is so easily found in Congo, but they have also learned the value of the minerals that go into some of the West’s most common devices.  Every cell phone, laptop, and mp3 player requires minerals that are mined in the Congo.  And out of the more than $2 billion spent by the international community on peacekeeping and emergency assistance for the Congolese, only one-tenth of one percent of that money addresses the issue of conflict minerals.

With no particular laws governing the flow of these minerals, and with no Western outcry for the UN to take measures to create them, the Congolese government is getting rich off of the terror of their own people.  Human rights violations are being constantly perpetrated by the government, but without the eyes of the world on them.  With militia running freely throughout the country, the Congolese people are suffering terribly.  The abduction and conscription of child soldiers has become commonplace.  Women and young girls are routinely raped and sold as sex slaves.  Civilian homes are looted and often burned to the ground. 

Mineral merchants don’t know where to turn.  While they might enjoy the favor of one armed militia, an opposing group will view him as an enemy and terrorize him.  Sexual assaults against men have become as common as those against women, as soldiers have found this an easy way to humiliate, subjugate, and demoralize their own people. 

At this time, the United Nations supports the Congolese government, while not acknowledging a few major points.  First, the Congolese government actually flourishes during this time of rampant rebel in-fighting, which allows top officials to make tremendous amounts of money in the trade of ill-gotten minerals.  Second, the neighboring countries of Rwanda and Uganda are experiencing economic growth because of their involvement in smuggling the minerals across the borders.  And third, the huge corporations that make devices using minerals from Congo are careful not to leave any evidence that they are making cell phones for the price of human dignity and life.

The only way to stop the violence in Congo would begin with consumers demanding that companies from which they buy only source minerals in non-harming ways.  When corporations have to answer to this, governments and other stakeholders can take stronger action and create a system similar to—but more successful than—the Kimberley Process.  With mandatory tracing and certification that only conflict-free minerals are used in consumer goods, it is possible that it will become more profitable to trade legally. 

For any regulation to be successful, it is important that we learn from the failures of the Kimberley Process and improve on it.  With the impending trip by Hillary Clinton to the Congo next week, it is possible that the groundwork can be laid for a more humane mineral-mining process.  With the eyes of the US on the Congo, peacekeeping and civilian protection become more possible.

Either that, or Leonardo DiCaprio has another movie to make.

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