This report evaluates the links between coltan trade and violence in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and examines the potential for recent legislation to break such links and reduce conflict.

In this book, Michael Nest unravels this complex story to offer a clear and compelling analysis of the relationship between coltan and violence in the Congo, and the battle between activists and corporations to reshape the global tantalum supply chain.

Essay from the year 2013 in the subject Politics - Region: Africa, grade: 2,0, University of Frankfurt (Main), language: English, abstract: "No blood on my mobile phone" - This slogan published by a Belgian human rights organization as part of a famous campaign gives a glimpse on what disadvantages the increasing digitalization and globalization has on our society.1 It refers to a material which is used in almost any device of our daily life. We are talking about coltan, one of the rarest and most sought commodities in the world. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) owes hereby one of the largest mineral deposits, but due to the illegal exploitation of natural resources it is at the same time one of the most affected countries.1 The DRC is rich in various minerals, but because of years of dictatorships and wars that lasted in Congo since the beginning of the so-called First Congo War in 1996, there was not only the death of up to an estimated 5.4 million people, but also the dissolving of ordered structures and the economic system.2 In the context of rival rebel groups, government militias as well as occupying forces from neighbouring countries like Rwanda and Uganda one can also find a number of foreign companies that take advantage from the lack of structure and use it for tracking economic interests. Over the last decades a web of corruption, exploitation and trafficking developed, through which it was possible for the beneficiaries of the conflict to achieve their profit.

The third edition of the Historical Dictionary of the Democratic Republic of the Congo looks back at the nearly 48 years of independence, over a century of colonial rule, and even earlier kingdoms and groups that shared the territory. This is done through a chronology, an introductory essay, a bibliography, and over 800 cross-referenced dictionary entries on civil wars, mutinies, notable people, places, events, and cultural practices.

This volume offers a comprehensive history and analysis of the Democratic Republic of the Congo during the tumultuous period of 1997 - 2001. The author examines the most recent events in this turbulent region, offering a contemporary account that is both extensive and detailed.

Describes the "conflict minerals" mined in the Congo amidst armed conflict and human rights abuses including gold, diamonds, coltan, tin, and tungsten used in cell phones, computers, and other electronics. Explores the slave labor, violence, and disease killing millions of Congolese mining these resources, and offers ways one can help.