In a report released today, Amnesty International and Afrewatch say major electronics brands such as Apple, Samsung and Sony are taking steps to ensure their products do not contain cobalt mined by child workers. He said that basic inspections had been neglected.
The report, “This is what we die for: Human rights abuses in the Democratic Republic of the Congo are fueling global trade in cobalt,'' finds that cobalt used in lithium-ion batteries is being sold to children as young as seven to adults. We are tracking that it was sold from the mine. Working in hazardous conditions.
Glamorous store displays and marketing of cutting-edge technology stand in stark contrast to children carrying sacks of stone and miners working in narrow man-made tunnels, risking permanent lung damage. .
Mark Dummett, Amnesty International Business and Human Rights Researcher
Mark Dummett, a business and human rights researcher at Amnesty International, said: “Glamorous storefront displays and marketing of cutting-edge technology are putting children at risk of permanent lung damage from carrying bags of stones and narrow man-made tunnels. This is in stark contrast to miners who are exposed to
“Millions of people are reaping the benefits of new technology, but few ask how it is made. Big brands mine the raw materials that make their profitable products. It's time for us to take some responsibility.”
The report states that traders buy cobalt from areas where child labor is prevalent and sell it to Congo Oriental Mining (CDM), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Chinese mineral giant Zhejiang Huayou Cobalt Co., Ltd. (Huayou Cobalt). The situation is documented.
An Amnesty International investigation uses investor documents to reveal how Huayou Cobalt and its subsidiary CDM process cobalt before selling it to three battery component manufacturers in China and South Korea. . It then sells to battery manufacturers that claim to supply the technology, as well as car companies such as Apple, Microsoft, Samsung, Sony, Daimler and Volkswagen.
amnesty international
DRC’s cobalt supply chain potential
Amnesty International contacted 16 multinational companies listed as customers of battery manufacturers listed as sourcing processed ore from Huayou Cobalt. One company acknowledged the relationship, but four companies could not clearly say whether they were purchasing cobalt from the Democratic Republic of the Congo or from Huayou Cobalt. Six said they were investigating the allegations. The five companies denied sourcing cobalt through Huayou Cobalt, but it is listed as a customer in the battery maker's internal documents. Two multinational companies denied sourcing cobalt from the DRC.
Importantly, no company provided enough details to independently verify where the cobalt in their products came from.
It's a great paradox of the digital age that some of the world's richest and most innovative companies can sell incredibly sophisticated devices without having to show where the raw materials for their components come from.
Emmanuel Wumpula, Afrewatch Executive Director
“The great paradox of the digital age is that some of the world's richest and most innovative companies can sell incredibly sophisticated equipment without having to show where the raw materials for the parts come from. ” said Emmanuel Wumpula, Managing Director of AfreWatch (Africa Resources Watch).
“In today's global market, abuses in mines remain invisible and unnoticed because consumers have no idea about the conditions in mines, factories and assembly lines. We found that they were buying cobalt without asking questions about where it was mined.”
Deadly landmines and child labor
DRC produces at least 50% of the world's cobalt. One of the country's largest mineral processors is his CDM, a subsidiary of Huayou Cobalt. Huayou Cobalt sources over 40% of its cobalt from his DRC.
Miners working in areas where CDM purchases cobalt face long-term health risks and a high risk of fatal accidents. Between September 2014 and December 2015 alone, at least 80 artisanal miners died underground in the southern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Many accidents are not recorded and bodies are left buried in rubble, so their true nature is unknown.
Amnesty International researchers also found that the vast majority of miners were working without the most basic protective equipment such as gloves, work clothes and face masks to protect them from lung and skin diseases. He also discovered that he spends many hours each day working with cobalt.
The children told Amnesty International that they worked up to 12 hours a day carrying heavy loads in the mines, earning between $1 and $2 a day. According to UNICEF, around 40,000 children worked in mines across southern Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2014, many of them mining cobalt.
They will spend 24 hours inside the tunnel. We arrived in the morning and were scheduled to leave the next morning.
Paul, 14 year old orphan, cobalt miner
Paul, a 14-year-old orphan, started mining at the age of 12. He told researchers that he always got sick when he was underground for long periods of time.
“I would spend 24 hours in the tunnel. I arrived in the morning and was scheduled to leave the next morning… I had to relieve myself in the tunnel… My adoptive mother took me to school. My adoptive father was against it and exploited me by forcing me to work in the mines.”
“The risks to health and safety make mining one of the worst forms of child labor. Companies with global profits of $125 billion are concerned about where the key minerals in their production come from. “We cannot credibly claim that we cannot confirm whether or not this was the case,” Mark Dummett said.
“Mining the basic materials that power electric cars and smartphones should be a source of prosperity for miners in the Democratic Republic of Congo. In reality, it is a miserable, miserable life with little money. Big brands have the power to change this.”
©Amnesty International and Afrewatch
François and his 13-year-old son, Charles, sort the stones and then transport them to a nearby trading company that buys the ore. Charles goes to school every morning and works in the afternoon. “It's difficult to pay school fees,” Francois says.Supply Chain Tracking – Corporate Shame
Amnesty International and Afrewatch researchers spoke to 87 current and former cobalt miners, 17 of them children, at five mining sites in southern Democratic Republic of the Congo in April and May 2015. heard. They also interviewed 18 cobalt traders and tracked the vehicles of miners and traders transporting cobalt ore. From mines to markets where large companies buy ore. The largest of these is Huayou Cobalt's Congolese subsidiary CDM.
Huayou Cobalt supplies cobalt to three lithium-ion battery parts manufacturers in China, Ningbo Shanshan and Tianjin Bamo, and South Korea's L&F Materials. These three battery component manufacturers purchased more than US$90 million worth of cobalt from Huayu Cobalt in 2013.
Amnesty International then contacted 16 multinational consumer brands listed as direct or indirect customers of the three battery component manufacturers. No one said they had been in contact with Huayu Cobalt or traced where the cobalt in its products came from before being contacted by Amnesty International.
The report shows that companies along the cobalt supply chain are failing to address the human rights risks that arise within their supply chains.
Currently, the global cobalt market is unregulated. Cobalt does not fall under existing U.S. “conflict minerals” rules that cover gold, coltan/tantalum, tin, and tungsten mined in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
Many of these multinational companies say they have zero-tolerance policies for child labor. But if a company hasn't vetted its suppliers, this promise isn't worth putting into writing.
mark dummett
“Many of these multinational companies say they have zero-tolerance policies for child labor. But if companies don't vet their suppliers, this commitment isn't worth putting into writing. They 's claims are completely unreliable,'' Mark Dummett said.
“Without laws requiring companies to verify and publish information about their mineral sources and suppliers, they may continue to benefit from human rights abuses. This lack of transparency must end.”
Amnesty International and AfreWatch are conducting human rights due diligence on multinational companies that use lithium-ion batteries in their products, investigating whether cobalt is extracted under unsafe conditions or using child labor, and calling for greater transparency about suppliers. I'm asking you to improve your sexuality.
These organizations are also calling on China to require Chinese mining companies operating overseas to investigate their supply chains and address human rights abuses in their operations. The group said Huayou Cobalt should check who (and where) is involved in the mining and trading of its cobalt and ensure it is not purchasing cobalt mined using child labor or hazardous conditions. It is claimed that.
“When human rights risks are identified in a supply chain, companies should not simply discontinue business relationships with suppliers or embargo DRC cobalt. We have to take corrective action against it,” said Mark Dummett.
amnesty international
How cobalt moves from mines to global markets
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