War zone mineral ban plea
 |
The mineral coltan can be found in electronic goods like mobile phones.
Story Tools
|
LONDON, England (CNN) -- Campaigners are urging manufacturers of electronic goods to avoid using a mineral produced in the Democratic Republic of Congo that has been linked to the bloody war there.
A recent United Nations investigation found that revenue generated by the sale of the little-known mineral coltan, also known as tantalum -- a vital component of laptop computers, mobile phones and other products -- is funding the conflict in which millions have died.
Rebel groups in Congo are also fighting for access to other vast natural resources such as diamonds, timber and gold in the country that is roughly a quarter of the size of the United States.
Lawmakers in Europe now want an embargo on so-called "blood tantalum," similar to the campaign that was waged against diamonds sourced from war-torn countries.
Jenny Tonge, international development spokeswoman for Britain's opposition Liberal Democrat party, told CNN: "It's a difficult process, but if it was possible with diamonds it must be possible with coltan."
However, a group that monitors the industry says that although less than 10 percent of the world's coltan now comes from Congo it can still end up in your mobile phone or laptop computer because once it is processed and melted down, its origins are untraceable.
At the moment about 80 percent of the world's supplies come from Australia.
"We know of material still coming out of the Congo is going to various parts of the world such as China and Central Asia for processing," said Simon Casey, deputy editor for Metal Bulletin.
"Where it goes after that no one can say for sure and undoubtably this material does end up in consumer goods that are for sale in Europe, America and Asia and all around the world."
The Liberal Democrats' Tonge said though that if consumers were made more aware of the issues surrounding the production of coltan they could put pressure on manufacturers to do more to check their supplies did not come from Congo.
-- CNN Correspondent Robyn Curnow contributed to this report
