Simple choices can help stop violence

I bought a new cell phone this weekend. I was reluctant to upgrade my old phone ““ even though it weighs about 4 pounds, is completely scratched up and is archaic in the face of the new breed of smartphones ““ but when my phone’s battery stopped holding its charge, I had to give in.

I used to get excited for a new phone, but lately, I’m wary of all the hidden obligations and fees that come along with one. As I was about to sign my mobile soul over to Verizon Wireless for another two years, I scanned the small print and imagined I saw, in teensy letters, “I support rape and sexual violence in the Congo.”

My contract doesn’t actually say this, but it might as well. It may seem like a huge jump to go from cell phones to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, but new research conducted by the Enough Project ““ an advocacy group dedicated to preventing crimes against humanity ““ reveals the connections.

Readers are probably familiar with the blood diamond trade, and cell phones (specifically, the batteries inside them) have a similar link to conflict.

The Congo has a complex and interconnected history of violence with its neighbors, and although a peace agreement was signed in 2002, the region is still unstable. The violence is especially prevalent in the eastern part of the country, where more than 20 armed groups defy the peace agreement and the democratically elected government.

Rebel groups continue to terrorize the population and fight the government for control of natural resources, such as mines holding tantalum, tin, tungsten and gold. These minerals are sold overseas to be used in cell phones, laptops, MP3 players and digital cameras. So when I buy a new cell phone, I’m fueling and funding the competition for these conflict minerals and the armed groups that war over them.

The violence perpetrated by these armed groups is vast and devastating. According to the Enough Project, they include the kidnapping and recruitment of child soldiers, extortion, torture and forced labor, and most prevalently, sexual violence.

It is estimated that hundreds of thousands of women and girls of every age have been raped in the DRC, most of them the raped serially and many requiring major surgery. Their families are often killed or robbed. The rapes are often so violent that women cannot work or care for themselves afterward, and often the nearest hospital or medical treatment is hundreds of miles away.

We must stop funding this violence. Most of us cannot completely give up the electronics that have become essential to our daily lives, but we can let electronic companies know that it is not acceptable to turn a blind eye to how their products are made. Corporations have a social responsibility to be aware of who is affected by their products.

Jonathan Greenblatt, a lecturer at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, is emphatic about the role consumers play in creating corporate social responsibility.

“You make an affirmative choice with your purchase,” he said. “You vote with your wallet.”

As consumers, we can give corporations the incentive to trace the supply line of their products so that they don’t buy from conflict mines. The Enough Project has a pledge online through which users can contact electronics companies and encourage them to change the way they procure minerals for their products.

While you may not feel like your small actions can change anything, the sum of many small actions ““ yours, your friends’, your family’s, their friends’ and so on ““ can have a profound impact on corporations and the way they conduct business. Greenblatt said that when consumers come together, they increase their buying power and subsequently, their influence on a corporation.

Other simple actions can make a big difference. Recycling cell phones and other electronics reduces the need to buy more of the minerals used in their batteries, which reduces the amount of money flowing to Congolese armed groups. California Recycles has a site just a few miles from UCLA where you can recycle your electronics. You can find other recycling locations on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Web site.

As I left the store with my new phone, I felt frustrated and disappointed that I couldn’t kick my harmful electronic habit. While I may not be able to completely remove myself from the complicated chain of violence in the Congo, I don’t have to sit back idly and accept the status quo. Nearly 40,000 students attend UCLA; that’s a huge amount of buying power. We can, and we should, leverage that power to stop violence in the Congo.

E-mail Ohlemacher at dohlemacher@media.ucla.edu.  Send general comments to viewpoint@media.ucla.edu.

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