Democratic Congo
Emily Blackwell
World Civilization
Ms. Huculak
18 April 2017
The Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of Congo plays a significant role in the global economy. This country contains a large amount of the world’s copper, cobalt, tin, tantalum, gold, and tungsten. These minerals are essential components of modern luxuries such as phones, jewelry, and cars (Global Witness). However, they are illegally mined by groups who in turn sell them to large companies in order to create these commodities. These outside parties prevent Congo from reaping the benefits of their natural resources. It is one of the richest countries in terms of raw materials, having an estimated twenty four trillion dollars in untapped minerals, yet it is one …show more content…
It was not until 1908 that the Belgian government officially colonized the country. After independence from the Belgian rule in 1960, Joseph Mobutu seized control of Congo and declared himself the president. Through several rigged elections, he was able to stay in power for thirty two years (CIA Fact Book). During his reign, Mobutu illegally stole billions from the country's economy from 1965 until 1997. To prevent repercussions he legalized his actions in 1971 and in addition gained control of over 2000 companies in Congo. This action lead to the fall of the economy and in turn Mobutu was forced to return the companies. However the economy was never able to come back from these events. In 1989 Mobutu’s regime crumbled and support was withdrawn from the country by the United States as well as the World Bank …show more content…
Armed groups control ninety percent of mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Jeffrey Gettleman). They force the natives to work in poor conditioned mines with forty percent of these workers being children. Here they face harassment, bad protective equipment, and long hours. In many cases miners have died from collapsing mine shafts, fatigue, disease, and physical abuse by their overseers. Their hard work goes without reimbursement since their pay is often low and taxed greatly. The money earned by the armed militias through selling the mineral to large companies is used to fund their group. Many corrupt officers of the country's military also use the mines as sources of income (Mining for our
World Civilization
Ms. Huculak
18 April 2017
The Democratic Republic of Congo The Democratic Republic of Congo plays a significant role in the global economy. This country contains a large amount of the world’s copper, cobalt, tin, tantalum, gold, and tungsten. These minerals are essential components of modern luxuries such as phones, jewelry, and cars (Global Witness). However, they are illegally mined by groups who in turn sell them to large companies in order to create these commodities. These outside parties prevent Congo from reaping the benefits of their natural resources. It is one of the richest countries in terms of raw materials, having an estimated twenty four trillion dollars in untapped minerals, yet it is one …show more content…
It was not until 1908 that the Belgian government officially colonized the country. After independence from the Belgian rule in 1960, Joseph Mobutu seized control of Congo and declared himself the president. Through several rigged elections, he was able to stay in power for thirty two years (CIA Fact Book). During his reign, Mobutu illegally stole billions from the country's economy from 1965 until 1997. To prevent repercussions he legalized his actions in 1971 and in addition gained control of over 2000 companies in Congo. This action lead to the fall of the economy and in turn Mobutu was forced to return the companies. However the economy was never able to come back from these events. In 1989 Mobutu’s regime crumbled and support was withdrawn from the country by the United States as well as the World Bank …show more content…
Armed groups control ninety percent of mines in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Jeffrey Gettleman). They force the natives to work in poor conditioned mines with forty percent of these workers being children. Here they face harassment, bad protective equipment, and long hours. In many cases miners have died from collapsing mine shafts, fatigue, disease, and physical abuse by their overseers. Their hard work goes without reimbursement since their pay is often low and taxed greatly. The money earned by the armed militias through selling the mineral to large companies is used to fund their group. Many corrupt officers of the country's military also use the mines as sources of income (Mining for our