Gorilla Protection

Category: Humanitarian Situation, Political situation, Threats | Date: Oct 04 2008 | By: gorilla

According to this article in the Associated Press fighting in Eastern Congo could escalate into a wider conflict.

“The top U.N. envoy to Congo warned Friday that renewed fighting in eastern Congo has heightened ethnic tensions and could lead to the renewal of a wider conflict in central Africa.

Alan Doss urged all militias in the country’s hilly eastern border area — the scene of the worst fighting and a humanitarian crisis in Congo — to support a U.N. disengagement plan to bring peace to the conflict-wracked region.

He expressed dismay at reports this week that a key rebel leader, Laurent Nkunda, who initially said he would discuss the plan, was now reported to be backtracking and “walking out of any effort to move the peace process forward.”

Nkunda launched a low-level rebellion several years ago claiming Congo’s transition to democracy had excluded the country’s minority Tutsi ethnic group, which is being targeted by ethnic Hutus from Congo as well as Rwanda.

The U.N. estimates there are about 20,000 militia fighters in the east, belonging to a number of different groups.

Among them are members of an extremist ethnic Hutu militia accused of orchestrating the 1994 genocide of 500,000 ethnic Tutsis in Rwanda. The group and others are accused of razing villages, terrorizing the local population and perpetrating rapes”.

The fighting in this region directly affects conservation efforts and the needs of Virunga National Park are now greater than ever and although the original authors of the gorilla blog have stopped posting here, WildlifeDirect will continue to support gorilla conservation efforts by maintaining this blog and raising funds to continue support the rangers in the field.

To date we have sent over $400,000 to the Virunga National Park  from funds raied on this blog which has helped significantly in keeping the rangers on the ground. Thank you all for your support. The situation in Eastern Congo is very serious but we cannot give up hope that peace will return. Our goal is to help ensure that wildlife, especially mountain gorillas survive through this trying period. Our thoughts and prayers are with the rangers who continue to work despite the escalating conflict.

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Tags: Congo, Mountain Gorillas, Virunga National Park, wildlifedirect

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Category: Community, Humanitarian Situation, Mountain Gorillas, Press, Threats | Date: Oct 02 2008 | By: gorilla

If you have a cell phone, DVD player or use a computer then chances are that some part of these devices are made of  Coltan. Coltan and Cassiterite are minerals found mainly in the Congo where it’s exploitation has been linked to the deadly conflicts and human abuses.

These mines are typically worked by children

The good news is that U.S. Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS) and Dick Durbin (D-IL) have introduced the Conflict Coltan and Cassiterite Act, legislation which would require certification of minerals imported from the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Their press release earlier this year

“We are witnessing a grave humanitarian crisis in Congo, and we must act now to put an end to the death and suffering,” said Brownback. “Everyday, Americans use products that have been manufactured using inhumanely mined minerals. The legislation introduced by Senator Durbin and I will bring accountability and transparency to the supply chain of minerals used in the manufacturing of many electronic devices.”

Every day in Congo, 1,500 people die as a direct or indirect result of the conflict over the mining of minerals like cassiterite and coltan; to date, the conflict has displaced more than 1.3 million Congolese and has resulted in over 5.4 million deaths.

“Without knowing it, tens of millions of people in the United States may be putting money in the pockets of some of the worst human rights violators in the world, simply by using a cell phone or laptop computer,” Durbin said. “We ought to do all we can to make sure that the products we use and the minerals we import, in no way support those who violate human rights abroad.”

The Conflict Coltan and Cassiterite Act requires the President to compile a list of armed groups in the DRC committing serious human rights violations, and prohibits the importation into the U.S. of any product containing columbite-tantalite (”coltan”) or cassiterite (tin ore) from the DRC if groups on the list would financially benefit.

Approximately 65% of the world’s coltan reserves are located in Congo. Congolese civilians are terrorized and brutalized by warring rebel groups seeking to capitalize on the mining of these minerals. Coltan is commonly used in electronic devices like cell phones, computers, and DVD players.

You can read more about this piece of legislation and what you can do on Take Action website here. According to this site, the bill has been referred to the Committee on Finance.

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Tags: Cassiterite, coltan, Conflict, Congo

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