Congo May Suspend Sales From Its Richest Tin Region, Mining Official Says

Joseph Kabila, president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is considering suspending sales from the country’s richest tin mining region, a provincial mines ministry official said today.

“The head of state is discussing with the mines minister right now and we expect a communiqué tonight,” Emmanuel Ndimubanzi, head of the North Kivu province’s division of mines, said by phone from the eastern city of Goma.

At least half a dozen armed groups operate in North Kivu’s Walikale territory, which is home to the Bisie cassiterite mine. Bisie accounts for between 70 percent and 80 percent of North Kivu’s cassiterite, or tin-ore, production. Last week, two pilots were kidnapped by the Mai Mai Cheka rebel group on Walikale’s main airstrip, halting some flights to the territory.

Congo is under pressure from activist groups and a new U.S. law against so-called “conflict minerals” to prevent its vast natural resources from supporting armed groups. Mai Mai Cheka is one of at least half a dozen groups operating along mineral trade routes in Walikale and preying on the local population.

Between July 30 and Aug. 2, at least 242 women were raped when 15 villages in Walikale were attacked by rebels, according to the United Nations. Mai Mai Cheka and Rwandan Hutu rebels, known as the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda, or FDLR, are suspected of carrying out the attacks, the UN said.

Both the Congolese army and UN peacekeepers have increased their presence in the region. A new Congolese military operation against the rebel groups may begin soon, Radio Okapi, a Congolese broadcaster, reported today.

Congo was the world’s fifth-largest producer of cassiterite in 2009, according to tin industry group ITRI Ltd. Walikale is also rich in coltan and gold.

To contact the reporter on this story: Michael Kavanagh in Kinshasa at mkavanagh9@bloomberg.net

• Tweet
• More
  • Business Exchange
  • Buzz up!
  • Digg
• Print
• Email