Is Apple buying conflict minerals? French prosecutor not investigating

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is making serious accusations against Apple: the iPhone manufacturer is profiting from the "massive laundering" of minerals that finance terrible crimes in the Congo. Apple denies this. Lawyers in the country have filed criminal charges against the US company in Belgium and France. While investigations are underway in Belgium, the public prosecutor's office in Paris has dropped the case: The allegations were insufficiently substantiated.

However, this does not mean that the matter is over. On the one hand, the French public prosecutor's office is referring the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) to a body responsible for war crimes, as Reuters reports, citing a document dated February 18. On the other hand, the lawyers have announced appeals against the public prosecutor's decision to close the investigation.

The charges accuse Apple of knowingly laundering gold, tantalum, tungsten and tin, which were illegally and violently plundered in the DR Congo, through international supply chains. Apple also misled consumers by claiming that its sources of raw materials were clean. The minerals illegally procured from the DR Congo were used in iPhones and computers. Tantalum is needed for capacitors and the majority of the world's reserves are believed to be in the DR Congo.

Plundered raw materials finance violent crimes

Apple has denied the allegations. According to the company, it regularly audits its suppliers. Apple has also published audits and supported organizations that campaign for better traceability of raw materials. However, one of these organizations, the Responsible Minerals Initiative, discredited a traceability system used by Apple called TSCI (International Tin Supply Chain Initiative) and removed it from the list of accepted procedures in 2022. In general, Apple says it is striving for more recycling to reduce the risk of conflict minerals.

In the east of the DR account, several armed insurgent groups are fighting for power. Looting, rape and murder are the order of the day. The looting of valuable metals finances the insurgency. Large quantities of ore are transported across the border to Rwanda and then sold under false declarations of origin. The DR Congo laments the loss of both human lives and revenue.

The DR Congo has already scored one success for itself: following the reimbursement of reports in France and Belgium, Apple has announced that it will no longer buy minerals bearing the DR Congo or Rwanda as a designation of origin. The decision is said to have been made at the beginning of 2024. Representatives of the Congo are skeptical whether Apple's suppliers will actually comply with its official order.

(ds)