The Issue
With the presence of 22 rebel groups and the ever-growing mining industry, the DRC is currently in a state of political turmoil and economic instability.
Rebel Groups vs. Government
Background:
After a long history with the Belgians, the Congo ultimately became independent in 1960. Succeeding independence came the overthrowing of their leader and the rise of Mobutu to power. Then, in the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, many of the killers, the Hutus, fled to the nearby DRC for asylum by the new DRC leader, Mobutu. In 1997, Mobutu was overthrown by Kabila, in which Tutsi rebel forces (the victims of the Rwandan Genocide) and Uganda supported the overthrowing. Angola and Zimbabwe came to the aid of the Congo. This was considered to be Africa's First World War. The first democratic elections were in the DRC were only in 2006, and the possible corruption of the voting has led to increased fighting. These various groups never left and continue to cause conflict. With the increase of the coltan mining industry and tension over resources, these past conflicts have allowed current tension to flourish. The first peace agreement was in 2008 and hoped to bring peace to the DRC and the 22 rebel groups, it however proved to be insufficient.
Who Is Currently in the DRC:
-FDLR- militias comprised of those responsible for the Rwandan genocide and have not left since 1994.
-General Laurent Nkunda- has militias that are supposedly protecting the Congolese Tutsis from the FDLR
-Congolese Military- has committed some of the worst crimes against civilians
-MONUC- UN peacekeepers struggling to keep peace.
-LRA- Ugandan rebel group that uses child soldiers and continuously kidnaps Congolese children and terrorizes civilians.
-Many other rebel groups (there are 22 in total)
Current Political State:
Rebel groups and their tension over resources and owning of land have left the DRC government with no control or power. There is no political unity within the DRC, support for different groups varies. Clashes between government forces and armed rebels have displaced tens of thousands of people from their homes, pushing many into neighboring Rwanda and Uganda. The Congolese military itself actually acts like a rebel group, terrorizing its people. Today, there are many armed rebel groups operating in eastern Congo, formed along racial, ideological, and political lines, and some are supported by Rwanda and Uganda. When some of the Rwandan and Ugandan forces withdrew from the DRC it left a political vacuum that rebel groups used to their advantage. They have fought over land ownership and are motivated by the wealth they see held within the land. To them power lays within the wealth and money. Political tension and fighting is greater in areas with higher amounts of resources. Fighting is known to be greater in the east of the DRC, where the coltan reserves are, than anywhere else.
After a long history with the Belgians, the Congo ultimately became independent in 1960. Succeeding independence came the overthrowing of their leader and the rise of Mobutu to power. Then, in the Rwandan Genocide of 1994, many of the killers, the Hutus, fled to the nearby DRC for asylum by the new DRC leader, Mobutu. In 1997, Mobutu was overthrown by Kabila, in which Tutsi rebel forces (the victims of the Rwandan Genocide) and Uganda supported the overthrowing. Angola and Zimbabwe came to the aid of the Congo. This was considered to be Africa's First World War. The first democratic elections were in the DRC were only in 2006, and the possible corruption of the voting has led to increased fighting. These various groups never left and continue to cause conflict. With the increase of the coltan mining industry and tension over resources, these past conflicts have allowed current tension to flourish. The first peace agreement was in 2008 and hoped to bring peace to the DRC and the 22 rebel groups, it however proved to be insufficient.
Who Is Currently in the DRC:
-FDLR- militias comprised of those responsible for the Rwandan genocide and have not left since 1994.
-General Laurent Nkunda- has militias that are supposedly protecting the Congolese Tutsis from the FDLR
-Congolese Military- has committed some of the worst crimes against civilians
-MONUC- UN peacekeepers struggling to keep peace.
-LRA- Ugandan rebel group that uses child soldiers and continuously kidnaps Congolese children and terrorizes civilians.
-Many other rebel groups (there are 22 in total)
Current Political State:
Rebel groups and their tension over resources and owning of land have left the DRC government with no control or power. There is no political unity within the DRC, support for different groups varies. Clashes between government forces and armed rebels have displaced tens of thousands of people from their homes, pushing many into neighboring Rwanda and Uganda. The Congolese military itself actually acts like a rebel group, terrorizing its people. Today, there are many armed rebel groups operating in eastern Congo, formed along racial, ideological, and political lines, and some are supported by Rwanda and Uganda. When some of the Rwandan and Ugandan forces withdrew from the DRC it left a political vacuum that rebel groups used to their advantage. They have fought over land ownership and are motivated by the wealth they see held within the land. To them power lays within the wealth and money. Political tension and fighting is greater in areas with higher amounts of resources. Fighting is known to be greater in the east of the DRC, where the coltan reserves are, than anywhere else.
Economics
Personal Salary:
Mining for coltan is a highly profitable industry, especially when compared to other opportunities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Thus, people are turning to coltan mining for hopeful economic survival. It has its advantages; the skill set required is next to none, the pay is better than many of their alternate opportunities, and it is a relatively steady job. However, while mining salaries are higher than the average salary made in most other common Congolese businesses, this money is far from secure. Rebel groups regularly steal money, tax civilians, and take control of mines. 71% of the population in the DRC is currently under the poverty line.
DRC Economy:
Much of the finance currently sustaining the DRC's civil war is directly connected to coltan profits. The Rwandan Army makes an estimated $20 million a month from the coltan mining, even though Rwanda has no coltan deposits. This decreases the benefits that the DRC should get from having such a profitable industry and inhibits the funding towards the government. In addition, coltan prices fluctuate greatly which has a constant effect on the economic growth, one year it is growing and the next it may be dropping. The DRC is in debt as well, at a -6.8% deficit rate. Current revenues in the DRC are $4.2 billion, which is about the same as the revenues for one quarter of iPhones. Apple makes as much money on one product as a country makes. The GDP per capita in the DRC is $300, which is less than the $357 profit made per iPhone.
Smuggling/Illegal Taxation:
The military forces of Uganda and Burundi have been involved in smuggling coltan out of the Congo for resale in Belgium. The illegal trade and smuggling of tantalum is also partly fueling the conflicts of the DRC. Coltan smugglers operating near the borders of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi have been directly linked to various DRC militias. Along with that, the rebel groups take part in illegal taxation, which are collected harshly and are used to fund the rebel groups, and the ever-increasing violence. In one area, the FARDC was able to earn their soldiers around $45,600-$90,000 per month. Money from mining is being funneled outside the DRC rather than internally where it is greatly needed.
Dependency on Mining:
One man, who travels upcountry in order to buy the coltan from the miners for sale in the city of Goma, was quoted as saying, "It's our only way of making a living. There's nothing else to do here." The economy, specifically in the East, is centered around the coltan mining industry, especially with the recent boom of the iPhone and other mobile electronics. In the end, it is near impossible to improve the economy of a country in such desperate need of money that is without the ability to successfully keep the profits from its main industry.
Mining for coltan is a highly profitable industry, especially when compared to other opportunities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Thus, people are turning to coltan mining for hopeful economic survival. It has its advantages; the skill set required is next to none, the pay is better than many of their alternate opportunities, and it is a relatively steady job. However, while mining salaries are higher than the average salary made in most other common Congolese businesses, this money is far from secure. Rebel groups regularly steal money, tax civilians, and take control of mines. 71% of the population in the DRC is currently under the poverty line.
DRC Economy:
Much of the finance currently sustaining the DRC's civil war is directly connected to coltan profits. The Rwandan Army makes an estimated $20 million a month from the coltan mining, even though Rwanda has no coltan deposits. This decreases the benefits that the DRC should get from having such a profitable industry and inhibits the funding towards the government. In addition, coltan prices fluctuate greatly which has a constant effect on the economic growth, one year it is growing and the next it may be dropping. The DRC is in debt as well, at a -6.8% deficit rate. Current revenues in the DRC are $4.2 billion, which is about the same as the revenues for one quarter of iPhones. Apple makes as much money on one product as a country makes. The GDP per capita in the DRC is $300, which is less than the $357 profit made per iPhone.
Smuggling/Illegal Taxation:
The military forces of Uganda and Burundi have been involved in smuggling coltan out of the Congo for resale in Belgium. The illegal trade and smuggling of tantalum is also partly fueling the conflicts of the DRC. Coltan smugglers operating near the borders of Congo, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi have been directly linked to various DRC militias. Along with that, the rebel groups take part in illegal taxation, which are collected harshly and are used to fund the rebel groups, and the ever-increasing violence. In one area, the FARDC was able to earn their soldiers around $45,600-$90,000 per month. Money from mining is being funneled outside the DRC rather than internally where it is greatly needed.
Dependency on Mining:
One man, who travels upcountry in order to buy the coltan from the miners for sale in the city of Goma, was quoted as saying, "It's our only way of making a living. There's nothing else to do here." The economy, specifically in the East, is centered around the coltan mining industry, especially with the recent boom of the iPhone and other mobile electronics. In the end, it is near impossible to improve the economy of a country in such desperate need of money that is without the ability to successfully keep the profits from its main industry.
Land Distribution
Current system:
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the third-largest country in Africa (after Sudan and Algeria) and has a total land area of 2,267,000 square kilometers. During colonial times, only Europeans were permitted to own land on a private basis. The vast majority of Congolese lived in rural areas and received land allocations from traditional authorities. Then during President Mobutu’s post-Independence reign (1965–1997), all land in the DRC was officially nationalized, but the system of customary land tenure continued to operate alongside the formal system. The unwritten land tenure system gives land rights to clans. In this system, land would be given based on inheritance or customary land-allocations from chiefs. These two systems, of national ownership, and clan ownership have made land tenure information unavailable or unclear for much of the country. In Kinshasa’s urban and peri-urban areas, an estimated 77% percent of residents reportedly own their own plots, but only about 30% have rights recognized under formal law.
Mining and Land:
The mining industry and rebel groups have given room for land to be exploited and taken, and the government is unable to act. With the introduction of new mines, people are being told they do not own their land and that it is now owned by the mines. There is a great amount inconsistency and overlap in federal laws regarding land ownership, which only helps increase tension across the nation. Not only are rebel groups fighting with rebel groups, but there is also tension between the groups and the civilians. Also, with the migration of people to various mining camps there is a lack of secure land ownership. Much of the conflicts relate back to a control of land.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the third-largest country in Africa (after Sudan and Algeria) and has a total land area of 2,267,000 square kilometers. During colonial times, only Europeans were permitted to own land on a private basis. The vast majority of Congolese lived in rural areas and received land allocations from traditional authorities. Then during President Mobutu’s post-Independence reign (1965–1997), all land in the DRC was officially nationalized, but the system of customary land tenure continued to operate alongside the formal system. The unwritten land tenure system gives land rights to clans. In this system, land would be given based on inheritance or customary land-allocations from chiefs. These two systems, of national ownership, and clan ownership have made land tenure information unavailable or unclear for much of the country. In Kinshasa’s urban and peri-urban areas, an estimated 77% percent of residents reportedly own their own plots, but only about 30% have rights recognized under formal law.
Mining and Land:
The mining industry and rebel groups have given room for land to be exploited and taken, and the government is unable to act. With the introduction of new mines, people are being told they do not own their land and that it is now owned by the mines. There is a great amount inconsistency and overlap in federal laws regarding land ownership, which only helps increase tension across the nation. Not only are rebel groups fighting with rebel groups, but there is also tension between the groups and the civilians. Also, with the migration of people to various mining camps there is a lack of secure land ownership. Much of the conflicts relate back to a control of land.
From Agriculture to Mining
The two main industries in the DRC are agriculture and mining. As we move into a more technology based world though, mining is becoming the more promising industry and it is where the current focus is. It is within the mining of coltan that the tensions derive from. The mass movement from agriculture to mining has had a significant impact on the country by resulting in severe food shortages and change in the economic system. The Democratic Republic of the Congo has some of the richest soils and favorable climatic conditions for food production on the African continent. But the conflict in the Congo has led to the destruction or plundering of small food production businesses, farms, crops, and livestock. Before Mobutu's reign, the Democratic Republic of the Congo was one the most major exporters of food to the rest of Africa. Now, agricultural production does not even meet the country's own food needs and has lead to a large decrease in the overall standard of living. Much of the violence in the DRC is linked to this food insecurity, adding even more instability to the country.
Foreign Relations
Refugees:
With all the rebel groups fighting within the DRC, many Congolese have taken refuge elsewhere in neighboring countries. This includes Angola, Rwanda and Uganda. Earlier this year (April 2012) increased violence broke out between rebel groups in the eastern DRC. Previous relations due to past conflict were not good with these countries, but now they are further resenting the Congolese. About 20,000 people have refuged in both Uganda and Rwanda since April. This is leading to a humanitarian crisis. Angola has expelled thousands of fleeing Congolese from its country and has threatened them with violence.
Trade:
Because of the conflict within the DRC many countries are very reluctant to invest in the country even when the resources and promise are there. The DRC needs these investments in order to expand its industries and improve current situations.
With all the rebel groups fighting within the DRC, many Congolese have taken refuge elsewhere in neighboring countries. This includes Angola, Rwanda and Uganda. Earlier this year (April 2012) increased violence broke out between rebel groups in the eastern DRC. Previous relations due to past conflict were not good with these countries, but now they are further resenting the Congolese. About 20,000 people have refuged in both Uganda and Rwanda since April. This is leading to a humanitarian crisis. Angola has expelled thousands of fleeing Congolese from its country and has threatened them with violence.
Trade:
Because of the conflict within the DRC many countries are very reluctant to invest in the country even when the resources and promise are there. The DRC needs these investments in order to expand its industries and improve current situations.