Dodd-Frank Section 1502 requires publicly traded companies to report on their use of conflict minerals originating from the Democratic Republic of Congo. These minerals finance armed groups and human rights abuses in the region. The law aims to curb this by requiring due diligence on mineral sourcing and disclosures to the SEC. Implementation of the law impacts thousands of companies globally and across industries and requires changes to supply chain tracking and management systems. Estimates of the costs for companies to comply range from billions to tens of billions of dollars.
This document provides a brief history of the Congo, beginning with pre-colonial tribes and communities in the Congo basin from 500 BCE to 600 CE. It then discusses the Congo Free State under King Leopold II of Belgium from 1885 to 1908, noting the human rights abuses and pressure from outside observers that led to reforms. Finally, it covers the Rwandan genocide of 1994 and its impact on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including the formation of Hutu and Tutsi refugee camps in the DRC that exacerbated conflict.
Saddam Hussein has repeatedly used "human shields" tactics in past confrontations with the West to deter military action and manipulate public opinion. This includes holding foreign civilians hostage at strategic sites in 1990-1991 and encouraging Iraqi families to shelter at palaces and factories in 1997. Currently, Iraq is encouraging international peace groups to volunteer as human shields and has placed military assets near civilian areas and facilities.
The role of AU organs on transitional justice in the DRCJoseph Yav
The document summarizes the conflict and transitional justice processes in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It describes the country's history of violence and wars since independence from Belgium in 1960 that have led to millions of deaths. Peace agreements like the 1999 Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement aimed to resolve the conflicts through ceasefires and withdrawals of foreign troops. The African Union and other regional organizations played key roles in negotiating these agreements and peace processes alongside the UN and neighboring countries involved in the conflicts. Transitional justice mechanisms were also established to pursue justice for serious crimes committed during the wars.
Why & how is it that international laws & international bodies & international public figures paid to maintain peaceful co-existence keep silent while even endorsing repeated NATO bombings that have killed thousands of innocent men, women & children & destroyed public & private property in a show of supremacy & arrogance over the nations they have targeted? NATO war crimes extend from Yugoslavia, to Iraq, to Afghanistan & now Libya. Why are international laws being manipulated to pressurize nations politically less powerful yet bountiful in natural resources or placed in influential economic routes? This simply explains why nations are invaded in the present context & how NATO has become above the law.
• Burma has the population of 60 millions mainly Buddhists. Burma shares border with China, India, Bangladesh, Laos and Thailand.
• Human beings live in the world but they have the different religions, faiths, perceptions, beliefs, traditions, customs and languages. We are part of the family of humans but all humans are not Burmese.
• Neither the U.N. nor any country's government has the right to impose laws or regulations on us. Our entire Constitution describes how to function as one nation.
• For example, private property has boundaries called property lines. The property owner is responsible for everything within those lines. No unauthorized persons have the right to cross over those lines. Likewise, no unauthorized persons have the right to enter our country. We have a responsibility to limit how many people may enter. We have the responsibility to determine whether or not they will be an asset to our nation.
• If I, as a property owner, protect animals on my property, I will prevent a hunter from trespassing and hunting them. It's the same situation with our country's immigration laws. If my personal property is so large that I can't protect it from unwanted people or animals from coming in, then I fence it off.
• Burma is facing illegal immigrants intruding from Bangladesh for decades. These illegal Bengalis from Bangladesh created fake ethnic name called (so-called Rohingya) unlawfully claiming part of Burma as theirs, committing crimes against humanity and massacring on local indigenous Arakanese of Burma because we can’t control the border securely in the past.
• Tackling corruption of immigration officials, proper and effective patrolling of borders and erecting a barrier along with Bangladesh is recommended. The defence of our citizens is the very first obligation of our government. It must be done at any cost. So, I personally support that there should be the borders between nations and I strongly believe in national sovereignty.
Foreign Policy cover story Our Man in Africa - HH 4MBReed Brody
The document summarizes America's covert support of Hissène Habré, the former dictator of Chad. During the 1980s, the CIA armed and trained Habré's security forces to help counter Libyan influence in Chad, despite Habré's well-documented human rights abuses. When rebels threatened to overthrow Habré in 1990, the CIA tried to help Habré escape. After Habré fled to Senegal, evidence emerged of the extensive torture and killings that occurred under his rule. In the late 1990s, human rights advocates began pursuing a case against Habré in Senegal, hoping its commitment to international law would lead to Habré facing justice.
The Tebu tribe in southern Libya hopes for lasting peace after decades of marginalization under Gaddafi. Tribal tensions between the Tebu and neighboring Arab tribes have led to violent clashes over control of trade routes and resources in the region following Gaddafi's fall. While ceasefires are holding for now, the future stability of the region depends on whether the new Libyan government can address the longstanding grievances and lack of rights faced by the Tebu tribe.
Maritime Piracy and Unlawful Acts against Safety of Lives at Sea: Inimical an...AJSSMTJournal
The protection of human rights through the justice delivery system is an indispensable feature of any system governed by the
rule of law. The protection of human rights have been acknowledged to a very large extent in most civilized or developed
countries of the world because of its necessity and global acceptance not just for the safety and sanctity of life. The
universality of human rights has been recognized by the United Nations as inherent in the very nature of human beings just
for its reflection. Today, the wave of economic globalization has given rise to increasing spread and sophistication of various
inimical activities and acts that negate the lofty ideals of the rule of law and protection of human lives at sea. The crossborder movement of ships with people and cargo, merchandise, investment and finance that encourage urbanization and
globalization has been in most recent times threatened by piracy and armed robbery at sea, torture and various clandestine,
unholy attitudes that are antithetic to fundamental human rights and has opened door for global criminal economy to
flourish. Among the questions this paper seeks to address are, what is the link between trans-border or sea crime and
globalization? What is piracy (Hosti-Humanis)? Why is piracy targeted at the sea..? Why does it occur most in Nigeria and
some countries in the West African sub-region? What are the economic benefits from the sea that are being threatened by
piracy and other crimes? And what efforts are being made by Nigeria and the West African sub-region including international
cooperation’s to address the issue? Above all, to construct the way forward to arrest the ugly situation.
This document provides a brief history of the Congo, beginning with pre-colonial tribes and communities in the Congo basin from 500 BCE to 600 CE. It then discusses the Congo Free State under King Leopold II of Belgium from 1885 to 1908, noting the human rights abuses and pressure from outside observers that led to reforms. Finally, it covers the Rwandan genocide of 1994 and its impact on the Democratic Republic of the Congo, including the formation of Hutu and Tutsi refugee camps in the DRC that exacerbated conflict.
Saddam Hussein has repeatedly used "human shields" tactics in past confrontations with the West to deter military action and manipulate public opinion. This includes holding foreign civilians hostage at strategic sites in 1990-1991 and encouraging Iraqi families to shelter at palaces and factories in 1997. Currently, Iraq is encouraging international peace groups to volunteer as human shields and has placed military assets near civilian areas and facilities.
The role of AU organs on transitional justice in the DRCJoseph Yav
The document summarizes the conflict and transitional justice processes in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It describes the country's history of violence and wars since independence from Belgium in 1960 that have led to millions of deaths. Peace agreements like the 1999 Lusaka Ceasefire Agreement aimed to resolve the conflicts through ceasefires and withdrawals of foreign troops. The African Union and other regional organizations played key roles in negotiating these agreements and peace processes alongside the UN and neighboring countries involved in the conflicts. Transitional justice mechanisms were also established to pursue justice for serious crimes committed during the wars.
Why & how is it that international laws & international bodies & international public figures paid to maintain peaceful co-existence keep silent while even endorsing repeated NATO bombings that have killed thousands of innocent men, women & children & destroyed public & private property in a show of supremacy & arrogance over the nations they have targeted? NATO war crimes extend from Yugoslavia, to Iraq, to Afghanistan & now Libya. Why are international laws being manipulated to pressurize nations politically less powerful yet bountiful in natural resources or placed in influential economic routes? This simply explains why nations are invaded in the present context & how NATO has become above the law.
• Burma has the population of 60 millions mainly Buddhists. Burma shares border with China, India, Bangladesh, Laos and Thailand.
• Human beings live in the world but they have the different religions, faiths, perceptions, beliefs, traditions, customs and languages. We are part of the family of humans but all humans are not Burmese.
• Neither the U.N. nor any country's government has the right to impose laws or regulations on us. Our entire Constitution describes how to function as one nation.
• For example, private property has boundaries called property lines. The property owner is responsible for everything within those lines. No unauthorized persons have the right to cross over those lines. Likewise, no unauthorized persons have the right to enter our country. We have a responsibility to limit how many people may enter. We have the responsibility to determine whether or not they will be an asset to our nation.
• If I, as a property owner, protect animals on my property, I will prevent a hunter from trespassing and hunting them. It's the same situation with our country's immigration laws. If my personal property is so large that I can't protect it from unwanted people or animals from coming in, then I fence it off.
• Burma is facing illegal immigrants intruding from Bangladesh for decades. These illegal Bengalis from Bangladesh created fake ethnic name called (so-called Rohingya) unlawfully claiming part of Burma as theirs, committing crimes against humanity and massacring on local indigenous Arakanese of Burma because we can’t control the border securely in the past.
• Tackling corruption of immigration officials, proper and effective patrolling of borders and erecting a barrier along with Bangladesh is recommended. The defence of our citizens is the very first obligation of our government. It must be done at any cost. So, I personally support that there should be the borders between nations and I strongly believe in national sovereignty.
Foreign Policy cover story Our Man in Africa - HH 4MBReed Brody
The document summarizes America's covert support of Hissène Habré, the former dictator of Chad. During the 1980s, the CIA armed and trained Habré's security forces to help counter Libyan influence in Chad, despite Habré's well-documented human rights abuses. When rebels threatened to overthrow Habré in 1990, the CIA tried to help Habré escape. After Habré fled to Senegal, evidence emerged of the extensive torture and killings that occurred under his rule. In the late 1990s, human rights advocates began pursuing a case against Habré in Senegal, hoping its commitment to international law would lead to Habré facing justice.
The Tebu tribe in southern Libya hopes for lasting peace after decades of marginalization under Gaddafi. Tribal tensions between the Tebu and neighboring Arab tribes have led to violent clashes over control of trade routes and resources in the region following Gaddafi's fall. While ceasefires are holding for now, the future stability of the region depends on whether the new Libyan government can address the longstanding grievances and lack of rights faced by the Tebu tribe.
Maritime Piracy and Unlawful Acts against Safety of Lives at Sea: Inimical an...AJSSMTJournal
The protection of human rights through the justice delivery system is an indispensable feature of any system governed by the
rule of law. The protection of human rights have been acknowledged to a very large extent in most civilized or developed
countries of the world because of its necessity and global acceptance not just for the safety and sanctity of life. The
universality of human rights has been recognized by the United Nations as inherent in the very nature of human beings just
for its reflection. Today, the wave of economic globalization has given rise to increasing spread and sophistication of various
inimical activities and acts that negate the lofty ideals of the rule of law and protection of human lives at sea. The crossborder movement of ships with people and cargo, merchandise, investment and finance that encourage urbanization and
globalization has been in most recent times threatened by piracy and armed robbery at sea, torture and various clandestine,
unholy attitudes that are antithetic to fundamental human rights and has opened door for global criminal economy to
flourish. Among the questions this paper seeks to address are, what is the link between trans-border or sea crime and
globalization? What is piracy (Hosti-Humanis)? Why is piracy targeted at the sea..? Why does it occur most in Nigeria and
some countries in the West African sub-region? What are the economic benefits from the sea that are being threatened by
piracy and other crimes? And what efforts are being made by Nigeria and the West African sub-region including international
cooperation’s to address the issue? Above all, to construct the way forward to arrest the ugly situation.
Iraq has the world's second largest oil reserves which remain largely unexplored. The US invasion of Iraq has given Western oil companies access to Iraq's oil wealth through a new law establishing 30-year contracts allowing large scale exploitation of Iraqi oil fields. Critics argue the Iraq war was fought for control of Iraqi oil, especially with statements by Dick Cheney and the profits already accrued by companies with ties to the Bush administration through Iraq-related contracts and investments. The new Iraqi oil law means victory for Bush and the Western economic and political interests he represents in gaining long-term control and profits from Iraqi oil.
the empire's warlike manoeuvres in the middle eastGRAZIA TANTA
The document provides an overview of recent Western military interventions in the Middle East, including Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. It summarizes the outcomes and failures of these interventions. It notes ongoing instability and violence in Libya and Iraq after Western withdrawal. In Afghanistan, it criticizes Western support for corruption and the growth of opium production. For Syria, it acknowledges repression but notes the opposition has taken up arms without widespread popular support.
This document provides background information on herdsmen terror in Nigeria. It discusses:
1) The identity of herdsmen as Fulani pastoralists and the dilemma around classifying them as terrorists versus seeing their actions as conflicts over land.
2) The history of Fulani migration and conquest in Northern Nigeria beginning in the early 1800s, establishing the Sokoto Caliphate and ambitions for Islamization.
3) How initial conflicts over grazing land have transformed into terrorism aimed at Islamization and "Fulanization" of Nigeria, carrying out orchestrated violence across the country.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. The Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) may exploit rising instability in Morocco to conduct more frequent attacks in Europe and North Africa. Moroccan security forces, which have prevented ISIS attacks in the country, are struggling to manage a growing protest movement. This civil unrest, paired with the shifting of migrant flows from Libya toward Morocco, will strain the country’s security resources and reduce pressure on ISIS networks there. Instability in Morocco also increases the risk of attacks in Europe, where Moroccan militants participated in recent ISIS attacks in Spain and a suspected ISIS-linked stabbing in Finland. [Read a recent warning on the implications of instability in Morocco.]
2. The partnership between the al Houthi movement and former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh is fracturing. Senior al Houthi leaders accused Saleh of conducting treasonous negotiations with the Gulf States. Saleh denied the accusations and blamed the al Houthis for governance failures in Sana’a. Tensions within the al Houthi-Saleh bloc provide an opportunity for the U.S. to advance a political settlement to the Yemeni conflict. The al Houthi movement lacks the capability to continue the civil war without Saleh’s forces. An elite-brokered peace deal that does not address the grievances driving the war will not end Yemen’s instability, however. [Read Katherine Zimmerman’s recommendations for U.S. engagement in Yemen.]
3. U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Pakistan for harboring terrorist groups during a speech announcing a new U.S. military strategy in Afghanistan on August 21. A Pakistani army spokesman dismissed the criticism and stated that Pakistan has taken action against militant groups in its terrain. Pakistan will likely intensify counter-militancy operations near the Afghan border to safeguard its relationship with the U.S. Pakistan may also increase support for militant groups in the disputed Kashmir territory to counteract U.S. engagement with India. [Read Frederick W. Kagan’s “Trump outlines the foundation of a changed approach in Afghanistan.”]
This document provides an overview of the history and geopolitics of Afghanistan. It discusses that Afghanistan is a landlocked country located in Central Asia with a population of 29 million. It outlines Afghanistan's history of influence from the US and USSR after 1947 and the civil war between mujahideen and the Afghan government backed by the Soviets from 1979-1989. It then summarizes the rise of the Taliban in the 1990s and their establishment of an Islamic Emirate, as well as their violent oppression of women. The document discusses key events and leaders in Afghanistan's conflicts up until recent US involvement after 9/11 and the anticipated effects of NATO withdrawal in 2014.
The Quest of a People to be heard The Continuous Struggle of Anglophone Camer...ijtsrd
The general desire of any human being is to be heard and to have a say in matters that concern him her, not to talk of a people who because of circumstances beyond their control, are being stigmatized and marginalized in a union or association they were forced to belong. So being silent and suppressed, no matter the length of time, will always end up in the people resisting such oppression either peacefully or violently which is the case of the Anglophones since its inception. An Anglophone Cameroonian is an indigene whose first foreign culture is Anglo Saxon and whose first problem is that of identity within a cultural milieu which is 85 percent Gaullic the second problem is that of language, and thirdly, equal opportunities with his her fellow francophone counterpart. His problem is the fear of both cultural extinction and politico economic marginalization Nkwi 2004 186 . Ngwainmbi Isaiah Djam "The Quest of a People to be heard: The Continuous Struggle of Anglophone Cameroonians from Nigeria to Cameroon" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-4 | Issue-5 , August 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd33110.pdf Paper Url :https://www.ijtsrd.com/other-scientific-research-area/other/33110/the-quest-of-a-people-to-be-heard-the-continuous-struggle-of-anglophone-cameroonians-from-nigeria-to-cameroon/ngwainmbi-isaiah-djam
It englights the era of Iraq under the leadership of Saddam hussein untill he was executed. I have analysed Saddam's tenure including Iran-Iraq war, both Gulf wars and Substance of Anarchy embedled in Iraq while scrutinizes his policies and Baa'th agenda.
The document summarizes key aspects of the Iran-Iraq war that lasted from 1980 to 1988. It provides statistics on the human cost of war, including 1.5 million innocent lives lost and thousands injured. Quotes from various leaders are presented that condemn war and advocate for peace. The war began when Iraq invaded Iran to try to gain control of the Persian Gulf region. Though Iraq made early gains, Iran did not surrender territory. After 8 years of heavy fighting without a clear winner, both sides accepted a UN-mandated ceasefire in 1988 in a conflict that greatly damaged both nations.
The New York Times is well-suited to provide citizens with essential information during times of crisis for three key reasons: 1) It effectively prepares readers beforehand through in-depth coverage of developing situations; 2) It thoroughly and accurately reports on crises as they unfold; and 3) It continues coverage afterwards to keep readers updated and ensure reporting accuracy. Additionally, the NYT has adapted to its audience's needs through improvements to its website and use of social media.
The New York Times is well-suited to provide citizens with essential information during times of crisis for three reasons: 1) It effectively prepares readers beforehand through in-depth coverage of developing situations; 2) It thoroughly and accurately reports on crises as they unfold; and 3) It continues coverage afterwards to keep readers updated and ensure reporting accuracy. Additionally, the NYT has adapted to its audience's needs through improvements to its website and use of social media.
The document discusses several issues related to conflicts in Southeast Asia, including oppressive regimes in Myanmar and other countries, sovereignty disputes between countries in the region, and intra-state conflicts within countries. It describes human rights abuses and oppression of minority groups by the military regime in Myanmar. It also outlines territorial disputes between Indonesia and East Timor, the Philippines and Malaysia, and Malaysia and Singapore. Civil conflicts within Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries over separatist and autonomy issues are also summarized.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. The fragmenting of the Yemeni state endangers U.S. policy in Yemen. The former governor of Aden, whom President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi ousted in early May, announced the formation of a transitional political council to govern southern Yemen on May 11. Yemeni military forces allied with the southern transitional political council and forces allied with the Hadi government mobilized. The U.S. supports the re-establishment of a unitary Yemeni state under the Hadi government to limit Iran’s influence and continue partnered counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
2. Al Qaeda encourages supporters to conduct fight-in-place attacks in the West. Hamza bin Laden, the son of former al Qaeda emir Osama bin Laden, advised “lone-wolf” attackers to prepare and refer to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)’s “Inspire” magazine for instructions. Bin Laden’s statement echoes a recent statement by AQAP emir Qasim al Raymi calling on individuals to conduct basic attacks in the U.S. and Europe.
3. Jama’a Nusrat al Islam wa al Muslimeen (JNIM), an al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb associate operating in Mali, is conducting a campaign to challenge the Malian government and UN peacekeeping forces in northern Mali. The group conducted a series of attacks on military bases in the past two weeks to fix security forces in place. JNIM is also securing freedom of movement in rural areas by intimidating local officials. Four al Qaeda-linked groups merged to form JNIM and set conditions for the current campaign in March 2017.
A lo largo de sus 16 páginas, este documento desglosa los factores amenazantes percibidos en varias tipologías (actores estatales externos, organizaciones extremistas violentas y organizaciones criminales transnacionales) y detalla a continuación cuál es el papel de las fuerzas armadas del país frente a cada uno de estos problemas, en virtud de la Estrategia Nacional de Defensa (NDS, por sus siglas en Inglés).
Iran and Iraq went to war for eight years over territorial disputes along the Shatt-al-Arab river and religious differences, as Iran had a Shia government while Iraq was led by Sunni Saddam Hussein, who sought to become the most powerful leader in the Middle East; ultimately, neither side gained any territory from the costly war which ended in a UN-brokered ceasefire.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. A Libyan militia freed Saif al Islam al Qaddafi, the favored son of deceased Libyan dictator Muammar al Qaddafi, on June 9. Saif al Islam’s release coincides with increasingly visible activity by Qaddafi-era figures, as well as strategic advances by the Libyan National Army led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. These conditions threaten many Libyan stakeholders, especially political Islamists, who fear that Haftar will bring about the return of the regime. This fear strengthens hardline militias and Salafi-jihadi groups, particularly al Qaeda and its associates.
2. The current U.S. counterterrorism strategy in Somalia is unlikely to address the long-term threat posed by al Shabaab. U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike on an al Shabaab site in southern Somalia in response to attacks on Somali and African Union peacekeeping troops, which began an operation to degrade al Shabaab’s strongholds in southern Somalia this week. Al Shabaab displayed strength on multiple fronts, however. The group resurged in northern Somalia, where it seized a town, and continued campaigns to counter the Kenyan intervention in Somalia and degrade security in Mogadishu.
3. Al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri characterized the Muslim world as fighting a single war on many fronts. He called for the unity of the umma, or Muslim community, against external foes, reiterating a theme emphasized by al Qaeda clerics and leadership. Zawahiri’s statement reflects al Qaeda’s efforts to influence Salafi-jihadi groups in Syria, Yemen, and other conflict zones throughout the Muslim-majority world.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. Al Qaeda celebrated key members of the September 11 attacks to commemorate the sixteenth anniversary of the attacks. Al Qaeda’s al Sahab media wing released the video will of one of the attackers, the first in five years. Al Sahab also released a letter from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the architect of the September 11 attacks, addressed to President Barack Obama in 2015 claiming the attacks were a defensive measure. These propaganda pieces are part of al Qaeda’s effort to reinforce its role as a leader of the Salafi-jihadi movement. [Read Katherine Zimmerman’s landmark report: “America’s Real Enemy: The Salafi-Jihadi Movement.”]
2. The partnership between the al Houthi movement and former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh remains strained. Saleh’s General People’s Congress (GPC) party criticized the al Houthi movement’s attempt to replace Saleh loyalists within the al Houthi-Saleh unity government with al Houthi movement supporters. The al Houthi-Saleh bloc will not fracture while the Saudi-led coalition remains a threat to both groups, though Saleh actively seeks to negotiate terms for a settlement. [Sign up to receive CTP’s Yemen Situation Reports.]
3. Kenyan presidential candidates are threatening to escalate civil unrest in the country ahead of the October presidential election. President Uhuru Kenyatta threatened to impeach opposition leader Raila Odinga should Odinga win the presidency after Odinga’s party boycotted the first session of parliament. The current political battle is reminiscent of the 2007 election, which escalated to widespread political unrest. Al Shabaab is conducting an attack campaign against Kenyan forces to sway the election in favor of Odinga, who advocates withdrawing from the counter-al Shabaab mission in Somalia. [Read CTP’s US Counterterrorism Objectives in Somalia: Is Mission Failure Likely?]
Terrorism poses a serious threat to America. The document outlines several terrorist attacks against American targets from 1972 to present day, including the 9/11 attacks which killed over 3,000 people. It also discusses the types of terrorism, both domestic and international, and trends showing that terrorist activity worldwide has increased in recent decades, becoming bloodier with more fatalities.
This document provides an overview of an information systems management course. It discusses key topics that will be covered, including what constitutes an information system, how information technology can improve productivity, debates around whether IT continues to provide competitive advantages, and the module format and evaluation process. The module will examine processes, social networks, search, and mobility and how information systems can support these areas. Students will complete evaluations including a curation page, business case study, and video analysis assignments.
The UN report found that the exploitation of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo is systematic and benefits armed groups. It notes that coltan mining in particular is largely controlled by armed groups, subjecting miners to dangerous conditions and low pay. While the minerals provide funding for the ongoing conflict, international companies and other private sectors also benefit from this resource exploitation without ensuring fair compensation for the Congolese people.
O documento discute o uso do mineral coltan na República Democrática do Congo e suas consequências negativas. O coltan é extraído por camponeses, crianças e refugiados em condições perigosas e é usado em dispositivos eletrônicos. Isso contribui para a continuação do conflito no país e violações de direitos humanos.
Iraq has the world's second largest oil reserves which remain largely unexplored. The US invasion of Iraq has given Western oil companies access to Iraq's oil wealth through a new law establishing 30-year contracts allowing large scale exploitation of Iraqi oil fields. Critics argue the Iraq war was fought for control of Iraqi oil, especially with statements by Dick Cheney and the profits already accrued by companies with ties to the Bush administration through Iraq-related contracts and investments. The new Iraqi oil law means victory for Bush and the Western economic and political interests he represents in gaining long-term control and profits from Iraqi oil.
the empire's warlike manoeuvres in the middle eastGRAZIA TANTA
The document provides an overview of recent Western military interventions in the Middle East, including Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria. It summarizes the outcomes and failures of these interventions. It notes ongoing instability and violence in Libya and Iraq after Western withdrawal. In Afghanistan, it criticizes Western support for corruption and the growth of opium production. For Syria, it acknowledges repression but notes the opposition has taken up arms without widespread popular support.
This document provides background information on herdsmen terror in Nigeria. It discusses:
1) The identity of herdsmen as Fulani pastoralists and the dilemma around classifying them as terrorists versus seeing their actions as conflicts over land.
2) The history of Fulani migration and conquest in Northern Nigeria beginning in the early 1800s, establishing the Sokoto Caliphate and ambitions for Islamization.
3) How initial conflicts over grazing land have transformed into terrorism aimed at Islamization and "Fulanization" of Nigeria, carrying out orchestrated violence across the country.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. The Islamic State of Iraq and al Sham (ISIS) may exploit rising instability in Morocco to conduct more frequent attacks in Europe and North Africa. Moroccan security forces, which have prevented ISIS attacks in the country, are struggling to manage a growing protest movement. This civil unrest, paired with the shifting of migrant flows from Libya toward Morocco, will strain the country’s security resources and reduce pressure on ISIS networks there. Instability in Morocco also increases the risk of attacks in Europe, where Moroccan militants participated in recent ISIS attacks in Spain and a suspected ISIS-linked stabbing in Finland. [Read a recent warning on the implications of instability in Morocco.]
2. The partnership between the al Houthi movement and former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh is fracturing. Senior al Houthi leaders accused Saleh of conducting treasonous negotiations with the Gulf States. Saleh denied the accusations and blamed the al Houthis for governance failures in Sana’a. Tensions within the al Houthi-Saleh bloc provide an opportunity for the U.S. to advance a political settlement to the Yemeni conflict. The al Houthi movement lacks the capability to continue the civil war without Saleh’s forces. An elite-brokered peace deal that does not address the grievances driving the war will not end Yemen’s instability, however. [Read Katherine Zimmerman’s recommendations for U.S. engagement in Yemen.]
3. U.S. President Donald Trump criticized Pakistan for harboring terrorist groups during a speech announcing a new U.S. military strategy in Afghanistan on August 21. A Pakistani army spokesman dismissed the criticism and stated that Pakistan has taken action against militant groups in its terrain. Pakistan will likely intensify counter-militancy operations near the Afghan border to safeguard its relationship with the U.S. Pakistan may also increase support for militant groups in the disputed Kashmir territory to counteract U.S. engagement with India. [Read Frederick W. Kagan’s “Trump outlines the foundation of a changed approach in Afghanistan.”]
This document provides an overview of the history and geopolitics of Afghanistan. It discusses that Afghanistan is a landlocked country located in Central Asia with a population of 29 million. It outlines Afghanistan's history of influence from the US and USSR after 1947 and the civil war between mujahideen and the Afghan government backed by the Soviets from 1979-1989. It then summarizes the rise of the Taliban in the 1990s and their establishment of an Islamic Emirate, as well as their violent oppression of women. The document discusses key events and leaders in Afghanistan's conflicts up until recent US involvement after 9/11 and the anticipated effects of NATO withdrawal in 2014.
The Quest of a People to be heard The Continuous Struggle of Anglophone Camer...ijtsrd
The general desire of any human being is to be heard and to have a say in matters that concern him her, not to talk of a people who because of circumstances beyond their control, are being stigmatized and marginalized in a union or association they were forced to belong. So being silent and suppressed, no matter the length of time, will always end up in the people resisting such oppression either peacefully or violently which is the case of the Anglophones since its inception. An Anglophone Cameroonian is an indigene whose first foreign culture is Anglo Saxon and whose first problem is that of identity within a cultural milieu which is 85 percent Gaullic the second problem is that of language, and thirdly, equal opportunities with his her fellow francophone counterpart. His problem is the fear of both cultural extinction and politico economic marginalization Nkwi 2004 186 . Ngwainmbi Isaiah Djam "The Quest of a People to be heard: The Continuous Struggle of Anglophone Cameroonians from Nigeria to Cameroon" Published in International Journal of Trend in Scientific Research and Development (ijtsrd), ISSN: 2456-6470, Volume-4 | Issue-5 , August 2020, URL: https://www.ijtsrd.com/papers/ijtsrd33110.pdf Paper Url :https://www.ijtsrd.com/other-scientific-research-area/other/33110/the-quest-of-a-people-to-be-heard-the-continuous-struggle-of-anglophone-cameroonians-from-nigeria-to-cameroon/ngwainmbi-isaiah-djam
It englights the era of Iraq under the leadership of Saddam hussein untill he was executed. I have analysed Saddam's tenure including Iran-Iraq war, both Gulf wars and Substance of Anarchy embedled in Iraq while scrutinizes his policies and Baa'th agenda.
The document summarizes key aspects of the Iran-Iraq war that lasted from 1980 to 1988. It provides statistics on the human cost of war, including 1.5 million innocent lives lost and thousands injured. Quotes from various leaders are presented that condemn war and advocate for peace. The war began when Iraq invaded Iran to try to gain control of the Persian Gulf region. Though Iraq made early gains, Iran did not surrender territory. After 8 years of heavy fighting without a clear winner, both sides accepted a UN-mandated ceasefire in 1988 in a conflict that greatly damaged both nations.
The New York Times is well-suited to provide citizens with essential information during times of crisis for three key reasons: 1) It effectively prepares readers beforehand through in-depth coverage of developing situations; 2) It thoroughly and accurately reports on crises as they unfold; and 3) It continues coverage afterwards to keep readers updated and ensure reporting accuracy. Additionally, the NYT has adapted to its audience's needs through improvements to its website and use of social media.
The New York Times is well-suited to provide citizens with essential information during times of crisis for three reasons: 1) It effectively prepares readers beforehand through in-depth coverage of developing situations; 2) It thoroughly and accurately reports on crises as they unfold; and 3) It continues coverage afterwards to keep readers updated and ensure reporting accuracy. Additionally, the NYT has adapted to its audience's needs through improvements to its website and use of social media.
The document discusses several issues related to conflicts in Southeast Asia, including oppressive regimes in Myanmar and other countries, sovereignty disputes between countries in the region, and intra-state conflicts within countries. It describes human rights abuses and oppression of minority groups by the military regime in Myanmar. It also outlines territorial disputes between Indonesia and East Timor, the Philippines and Malaysia, and Malaysia and Singapore. Civil conflicts within Myanmar and other Southeast Asian countries over separatist and autonomy issues are also summarized.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. The fragmenting of the Yemeni state endangers U.S. policy in Yemen. The former governor of Aden, whom President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi ousted in early May, announced the formation of a transitional political council to govern southern Yemen on May 11. Yemeni military forces allied with the southern transitional political council and forces allied with the Hadi government mobilized. The U.S. supports the re-establishment of a unitary Yemeni state under the Hadi government to limit Iran’s influence and continue partnered counterterrorism operations against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
2. Al Qaeda encourages supporters to conduct fight-in-place attacks in the West. Hamza bin Laden, the son of former al Qaeda emir Osama bin Laden, advised “lone-wolf” attackers to prepare and refer to al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)’s “Inspire” magazine for instructions. Bin Laden’s statement echoes a recent statement by AQAP emir Qasim al Raymi calling on individuals to conduct basic attacks in the U.S. and Europe.
3. Jama’a Nusrat al Islam wa al Muslimeen (JNIM), an al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb associate operating in Mali, is conducting a campaign to challenge the Malian government and UN peacekeeping forces in northern Mali. The group conducted a series of attacks on military bases in the past two weeks to fix security forces in place. JNIM is also securing freedom of movement in rural areas by intimidating local officials. Four al Qaeda-linked groups merged to form JNIM and set conditions for the current campaign in March 2017.
A lo largo de sus 16 páginas, este documento desglosa los factores amenazantes percibidos en varias tipologías (actores estatales externos, organizaciones extremistas violentas y organizaciones criminales transnacionales) y detalla a continuación cuál es el papel de las fuerzas armadas del país frente a cada uno de estos problemas, en virtud de la Estrategia Nacional de Defensa (NDS, por sus siglas en Inglés).
Iran and Iraq went to war for eight years over territorial disputes along the Shatt-al-Arab river and religious differences, as Iran had a Shia government while Iraq was led by Sunni Saddam Hussein, who sought to become the most powerful leader in the Middle East; ultimately, neither side gained any territory from the costly war which ended in a UN-brokered ceasefire.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. A Libyan militia freed Saif al Islam al Qaddafi, the favored son of deceased Libyan dictator Muammar al Qaddafi, on June 9. Saif al Islam’s release coincides with increasingly visible activity by Qaddafi-era figures, as well as strategic advances by the Libyan National Army led by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar. These conditions threaten many Libyan stakeholders, especially political Islamists, who fear that Haftar will bring about the return of the regime. This fear strengthens hardline militias and Salafi-jihadi groups, particularly al Qaeda and its associates.
2. The current U.S. counterterrorism strategy in Somalia is unlikely to address the long-term threat posed by al Shabaab. U.S. Africa Command conducted an airstrike on an al Shabaab site in southern Somalia in response to attacks on Somali and African Union peacekeeping troops, which began an operation to degrade al Shabaab’s strongholds in southern Somalia this week. Al Shabaab displayed strength on multiple fronts, however. The group resurged in northern Somalia, where it seized a town, and continued campaigns to counter the Kenyan intervention in Somalia and degrade security in Mogadishu.
3. Al Qaeda emir Ayman al Zawahiri characterized the Muslim world as fighting a single war on many fronts. He called for the unity of the umma, or Muslim community, against external foes, reiterating a theme emphasized by al Qaeda clerics and leadership. Zawahiri’s statement reflects al Qaeda’s efforts to influence Salafi-jihadi groups in Syria, Yemen, and other conflict zones throughout the Muslim-majority world.
CTP’s Threat Update series is a weekly update and assessment of the al Qaeda network. The al Qaeda network update includes detailed assessments of al Qaeda’s affiliates in Yemen, the Horn of Africa, and the Maghreb and Sahel.
Below are the top three takeaways from the week:
1. Al Qaeda celebrated key members of the September 11 attacks to commemorate the sixteenth anniversary of the attacks. Al Qaeda’s al Sahab media wing released the video will of one of the attackers, the first in five years. Al Sahab also released a letter from Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the architect of the September 11 attacks, addressed to President Barack Obama in 2015 claiming the attacks were a defensive measure. These propaganda pieces are part of al Qaeda’s effort to reinforce its role as a leader of the Salafi-jihadi movement. [Read Katherine Zimmerman’s landmark report: “America’s Real Enemy: The Salafi-Jihadi Movement.”]
2. The partnership between the al Houthi movement and former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh remains strained. Saleh’s General People’s Congress (GPC) party criticized the al Houthi movement’s attempt to replace Saleh loyalists within the al Houthi-Saleh unity government with al Houthi movement supporters. The al Houthi-Saleh bloc will not fracture while the Saudi-led coalition remains a threat to both groups, though Saleh actively seeks to negotiate terms for a settlement. [Sign up to receive CTP’s Yemen Situation Reports.]
3. Kenyan presidential candidates are threatening to escalate civil unrest in the country ahead of the October presidential election. President Uhuru Kenyatta threatened to impeach opposition leader Raila Odinga should Odinga win the presidency after Odinga’s party boycotted the first session of parliament. The current political battle is reminiscent of the 2007 election, which escalated to widespread political unrest. Al Shabaab is conducting an attack campaign against Kenyan forces to sway the election in favor of Odinga, who advocates withdrawing from the counter-al Shabaab mission in Somalia. [Read CTP’s US Counterterrorism Objectives in Somalia: Is Mission Failure Likely?]
Terrorism poses a serious threat to America. The document outlines several terrorist attacks against American targets from 1972 to present day, including the 9/11 attacks which killed over 3,000 people. It also discusses the types of terrorism, both domestic and international, and trends showing that terrorist activity worldwide has increased in recent decades, becoming bloodier with more fatalities.
This document provides an overview of an information systems management course. It discusses key topics that will be covered, including what constitutes an information system, how information technology can improve productivity, debates around whether IT continues to provide competitive advantages, and the module format and evaluation process. The module will examine processes, social networks, search, and mobility and how information systems can support these areas. Students will complete evaluations including a curation page, business case study, and video analysis assignments.
The UN report found that the exploitation of natural resources in the Democratic Republic of Congo is systematic and benefits armed groups. It notes that coltan mining in particular is largely controlled by armed groups, subjecting miners to dangerous conditions and low pay. While the minerals provide funding for the ongoing conflict, international companies and other private sectors also benefit from this resource exploitation without ensuring fair compensation for the Congolese people.
O documento discute o uso do mineral coltan na República Democrática do Congo e suas consequências negativas. O coltan é extraído por camponeses, crianças e refugiados em condições perigosas e é usado em dispositivos eletrônicos. Isso contribui para a continuação do conflito no país e violações de direitos humanos.
The document provides background information on the ongoing conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which began following the country's independence from Belgium in the 1960s. It discusses how armed groups continue fighting to control mining operations that produce conflict minerals like tin, tungsten, and tantalum, which are used in electronics like cell phones. These minerals help fund the armed groups and prolong the conflict. The document calls on consumers and companies to help address this issue through measures like traceability and certification of minerals.
Policy Intiative for the Democratic Republic of Congo PresentationMichael Nemmetz
No other place on earth can the failed effects of European colonialism be displayed than the broken continent of Africa. The “dark continent” lured European powers to balkanization of the continent and exploitation of its vast resources; more so, the mass effects of such “divide-and-conquer” politics and colonization of Africa can most accurately be depicted and drawn from the historical contexts of the Congo kingdom. From King Leopold II to the Western backed rule of Mobutu Sese Seko and the current mineral grab by multinational corporations, the Congo has and continues to be both economically and socially exploited. Hope of sustainable democracy in Africa and specifically in the Congo can not be established until the Congolese take pride in an unified culture (ex., American patriotism), nationalize their mineral resources, and an international governance board (ex,. Board of Director’s) is established. The DRC, with the support of the international community (America, UN, IMF, World Bank), needs to be included in a Marshall Plan and adopt a Monroe Doctrine, only than can the Congo become economically and socially independent.
Management of Mineral Resources in the DR CongoRCS Global
This document provides an overview of the mining sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo. It discusses that the sector includes both large-scale mining and artisanal small-scale mining. Large-scale mining focuses on copper, cobalt and gold, while artisanal mining focuses on gold, tin, tantalum and other minerals. The sector faces many challenges, including insecurity due to armed groups taxing mineral trade, and weak governance structures. Addressing these internal constraints will be important for realizing the mining sector's potential to contribute to the country's economic growth and development.
The capital of Congo is Brazzaville. The population is over 4 million as of 2011. The official language is French and the main religions are Christianity, Islam, and animism. Poverty has risen since the 1980s, affecting over half the population especially in rural areas. Access to services like water and transportation is difficult due to the country's vast distances and ruined infrastructure. HIV/AIDS affects over 5% of the population. Conflicts have displaced many and destroyed villages, leaving people without homes or possessions.
TEDx Manchester: AI & The Future of WorkVolker Hirsch
TEDx Manchester talk on artificial intelligence (AI) and how the ascent of AI and robotics impacts our future work environments.
The video of the talk is now also available here: https://youtu.be/dRw4d2Si8LA
The document discusses the role of multinational corporations in conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo since 1996. It notes that 85 companies were named in a 2001 UN report for violating international standards by illegally exploiting Congo's natural resources, especially coltan used in electronics. Some companies paid rebel groups for access to mines where forced labor was used. While foreign investment in Congo increased, companies avoided investigations into their suppliers and failed to conduct proper due diligence regarding human rights abuses linked to their supply chains. As a result, massive human suffering including hunger, disease and violence resulted from the conflicts partly driven by corporate activities.
The document provides an overview of the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, including its colonial history, post-independence instability, and the involvement of foreign militias and armies. It discusses the failed efforts of peace agreements and UN peacekeeping missions to stabilize the country and end widespread violence, human rights abuses, and the exploitation of natural resources that have led to millions of deaths. Key challenges included the lack of internal buy-in for ceasefires, inadequate security forces, and the UN's reluctance to take robust action against rebel groups.
Armed Conflict and Human Rights in DRC, July 2015Brien Desilets
This issue paper will provide background information on the history and current situation of DR Congo, with an emphasis on some of the most reported negative impacts of ongoing armed conflict on the region’s inhabitants. Next, the paper will offer an analysis of multiple perspectives on the relationship between natural resources and armed conflict in general, and “conflict minerals” in DR Congo specifically.
Burkina Faso is a landlocked country in West Africa that gained independence from France in 1960. It has a population of around 20 million and its economy relies heavily on agriculture and gold mining. The country faces environmental challenges of desertification, drought, and water scarcity that are exacerbated by overgrazing, deforestation, and subsistence farming practices.
The Democratic Republic of Congo has vast natural resources worth trillions of dollars, including minerals that are crucial components of modern electronics. However, much of the mining is done through small, unstable operations controlled by armed groups. This leads to human rights abuses like child labor and unsafe working conditions. While laws have aimed to reduce conflict minerals, it remains difficult to trace the original sources of minerals in electronics.
1) Kenya's new president Uhuru Kenyatta appointed a Harvard-educated finance minister and nominated the first female foreign secretary. The private sector is optimistic about economic reforms.
2) Tax authorities in Congo failed to account for $88 million in mining revenues, and London-listed mining company ENRC faces a UK corruption probe over Congo operations.
3) Ethiopia is negotiating with Brazil, Russia and India to finance new rail projects, as it works to develop infrastructure and transform its economy.
The document discusses the resource curse phenomenon where countries with an abundance of natural resources like oil, gas, and minerals tend to have less economic growth and worse development outcomes than countries with fewer natural resources. It provides examples of how the resource curse has severely impacted countries like Venezuela and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). In DRC, the fighting over control of gold and other mineral resources has led to ongoing violence and widespread sexual violence against women and girls with little benefit for the country's people. Strong democratic institutions and transparency in resource industries are discussed as potential ways to overcome the resource curse but major challenges remain.
The document discusses the issues of conflict and violence related to the diamond and natural resource trade in several African countries such as Sierra Leone, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Angola. It describes how rebel groups have taken control of diamond mines and trade diamonds for weapons, fueling prolonged civil wars and human rights abuses. Foreign intervention and occupation of resource-rich areas by countries like Uganda and Rwanda have further complicated and sustained the conflicts for economic and political gain. Peace agreements have had little success in establishing lasting peace due to ongoing corruption and criminal networks perpetuating the conflicts for access to valuable natural resources.
Curriculum PowerPoint
matches 5th and 6th-grade standards. First-person resources
copyright of Global Ties Akron Know Your Community Know Your World
know-your-world.org
Talk on the issue of land grabbing for biofuel production in Africa and whether or not it can be sustainable.
Organised by the University of Sheffield African Affairs Network.
Speakers:
Lionel Cliffe
Emeritus Professor – University of Leeds
Founding editor of the Review of African Political Economy.
'Distinguished Africanist Award' from UK African Studies Association 2002
Dr Elisa Greco,
Research Associate , Institute for Development Policy and Management University of Manchester
This document discusses the challenges of implementing human rights due diligence in mineral supply chains from conflict areas like the Democratic Republic of Congo. It introduces the UN framework for human rights due diligence and reviews multi-stakeholder initiatives aimed at increasing supply chain traceability and human rights compliance. However, it notes that initiatives face significant obstacles to implementation in the DRC due to issues like insecurity, informal mining and trade, and lack of local political will. Local perspectives are often missing from these initiatives as well.
CONSULTATIVE CONFERENCE ON PEACE AGREEMENTS AND CONFLICT MINERALS IN THE DEMO...Dr Lendy Spires
The conference discussed conflict minerals in the DRC and the key players involved. These included the Congolese state, armed groups, mining companies, small-scale miners, neighboring countries, and civilians. Minerals play an important role in funding armed groups. There was debate around the definitions of terms like "conflict minerals" and it was suggested that the focus should be on the conflict actors rather than the minerals themselves. The conference recognized the important role of national and international civil society in addressing these issues and searching for solutions through initiatives like EITI. However, it was noted that solutions imposed from outside may not be appropriate and that the DRC government needs to consult domestic experts.
This document provides an overview of contemporary globalization and its key aspects, including:
- Economic globalization and the increasing interconnectedness of economies through trade organizations like NAFTA and the WTO.
- Technological globalization driven by advances in communication technologies.
- Cultural globalization and the spread of Western culture through multinational corporations.
- Political globalization represented by institutions like the United Nations.
- Military globalization and the role of global alliances.
It also discusses theories of globalization's effects from scholars like Friedman and potential consequences such as environmental damage, labor exploitation, and the erosion of traditional cultures.
Myths and Mining: The reality of Resource Governance in Africa Dr Lendy Spires
- Following colonial conquest, European countries integrated African mining into their own economies, exploiting Africa's mineral resources to fuel their industrialization. Europe monopolized the extraction and commercialization of African minerals for its own advantage.
- During the colonial period and after independence, Western countries maintained control over African mineral extraction and trade, with little benefit to African peoples. Structural adjustment programs in the 1980s further ensured that minerals revenues were used to repay debts to Western creditors rather than for development.
- In the 1990s, pressure to privatize state-run mining companies and attract foreign investment led African governments to sell off mineral rights cheaply. However, many foreign investors were solely interested in asset stripping, not creating wealth or jobs
The document discusses the historical causes and context of the famine in Somalia in 2011. It outlines how colonialism disrupted traditional agriculture in Somalia and other African nations by imposing cash crops for export and taxation, leading to vulnerability. Government instability and violence by the militant group El Shabaab exacerbated the effects of the drought in 2011 by preventing aid distribution. A long history of conflict, humanitarian crises, and instability in Somalia since colonial times and its independence has damaged infrastructure and institutions.
The document summarizes several issues facing modern Africa, including civil wars and genocide in Rwanda and Darfur that have led to mass killings and displacement. It also discusses ongoing conflicts in the Democratic Republic of Congo, drought and water scarcity exacerbating resource conflicts, and health crises like the AIDS epidemic and malaria that are straining countries and reducing life expectancy. China's growing economic and political influence in Africa is also addressed.
1. International trade began as an exchange of surplus goods between ancient societies and communities. People later specialized in producing certain goods.
2. Countries trade because their distributions of economic resources differ - some have abundant natural resources while others have more advanced technologies. This allows countries to benefit by importing goods they have a comparative disadvantage in producing.
3. International trade benefits consumers by maximizing the satisfaction of their wants through access to a variety of goods from different countries.
The Central African Republic gained independence from France in 1960 and has experienced considerable political instability, including several coups and an overthrow of the government. It remains one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world, with ongoing conflicts spilling over from neighboring countries like Sudan, South Sudan, Chad, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The country faces major challenges including insecurity, poverty, underdevelopment, and instability exacerbated by its location in a volatile region.
Similar to Dodd-Frank Section 1502: Significance and Public Policy Implications (20)
Every Summer, the Payson Center for International Development offers intensive, two (2) to three (3) week long study-abroad programs with one (1), two (2) or three (3) courses per location. Courses are open to graduate students and non-Tulane graduate level-students. All courses earn three (3) credits. The cost varies based on location and number of courses taken in one location. (Note: Price does not include airfare).
For Summer 2015, the Payson Center for International Development is pleased to offer courses in five (5) locations as part of the 2015 Global Development Summer Institute.
Every Summer, the Payson Center for International Development offers intensive, two (2) to three (3) week long study-abroad programs with one (1), two (2) or three (3) courses per location. Courses are open to graduate students and non-Tulane graduate level-students. All courses earn three (3) credits. The cost varies based on location and number of courses taken in one location. (Note: Price does not include airfare).
For Summer 2015, the Payson Center for International Development is pleased to offer courses in five (5) locations as part of the 2015 Global Development Summer Institute.
Ethiopia
Italy
Nepal
Myanmar
Panama
For information go to: http://www.payson.tulane.edu/si
The document outlines details about the Nepal Summer Institute taking place from June 22nd to July 3rd, 2015 in Kathmandu, Nepal. The course, titled "Child Wellbeing & Development", will examine challenges facing children in Nepal such as lack of access to healthcare, education and legal protections. Participants will learn about interventions targeting child health, work/economic wellbeing, and education availability/quality through site visits, guest speakers and group work. The course will be taught through lectures and field trips, with housing and meals provided in Kathmandu.
Every Summer, the Payson Center for International Development offers intensive, two (2) to three (3) week long study-abroad programs with one (1), two (2) or three (3) courses per location. Courses are open to graduate students and non-Tulane graduate level-students. All courses earn three (3) credits. The cost varies based on location and number of courses taken in one location. (Note: Price does not include airfare).
For Summer 2015, the Payson Center for International Development is pleased to offer courses in five (5) locations as part of the 2015 Global Development Summer Institute.
Ethiopia
Italy
Nepal
Myanmar
Panama
For information go to: http://www.payson.tulane.edu/si
This document outlines the agenda for Graduate Student Orientation Fall 2014 at Tulane University. The day-long event covers various topics to help new graduate students get acclimated, including introductions, academics and regulations, student support, technology resources, upcoming events, and an overview of facilities and services in New Orleans. Presenters will discuss requirements, course offerings, advising, research and internship opportunities, technology tools, and student activities. There will also be time for questions as well as an optional campus tour for administrative tasks and getting familiar with the area.
This document provides an overview of topics related to international political and economic relations. It outlines the history from mercantilism to modern globalization and discusses the transition from British to American hegemony after World War 2. Key international organizations from this period are also summarized, including the IMF, World Bank, GATT/WTO, and United Nations. Threats to American hegemony from the 1970s onward are then addressed.
This document contains lecture notes on the topics of international political and economic relations. It discusses several historical periods including mercantilism, industrialization under British hegemony, the inter-war isolationist period, and the post-WWII era of US hegemony and the formation of international institutions. It also summarizes the roles and founding of organizations such as the IMF, World Bank, UN, WTO/GATT and examines debates around hegemony versus international regimes in stabilizing the global economy. Mini-courses on relevant subjects are also listed.
This document is the notes from a class on international political and economic relations. It covers several topics discussed in the class, including the history of international relations from mercantilism to the present day. It also discusses the rise and fall of hegemons like Britain and the US, as well as the development of international organizations in the post-WWII era. Mini-courses and debates are also listed on topics like hegemony versus international regimes.
This document contains lecture notes from an international political economy course covering several topics:
- A timeline of major periods in international political economy from Mercantilism to the present.
- Descriptions of key concepts like mercantilism, industrialization, US hegemony, and international regimes.
- Overviews of international organizations like the IMF, World Bank, and WTO established after World War 2.
- Discussion questions about the rise and potential decline of US hegemony and factors threatening global stability.
This document is a series of slides for a class on international political and economic relations. It covers several topics throughout history including mercantilism, industrialization and British hegemony, isolationism, US hegemony and international regimes, and globalization. It also discusses the rise and fall of hegemons like Britain and the US. Key international organizations from the post-WWII era are outlined like the IMF, World Bank, GATT/WTO. Cooperation models like the European Union are briefly described. The slides pose discussion questions and prepare students for a debate on stabilization through hegemony versus international regimes.
Tulane has subscribed to the International SOS Scholastic Traveler Comprehensive Plan, which covers all Tulane faculty, staff and students while outside the USA on University business or with a University-sponsored program. This assistance program, managed and administered by International SOS, provides international medical, security and travel assistance, including both medical and security evacuations.
Please note: International SOS is an assistance program, not health insurance. While the International SOS policy offers useful services during an emergency, it does not replace the need for health insurance while overseas.
Presentation for IDEV-6917-01 Development, Commerce, and Environmental Protection (f13) with instructor, Mario Mancilla Oct 25 2013 - 3:00pm to Oct 27 2013 - 1:00pm
DESCRIPTION:
This course involves a general examination of main concepts of Sustainable Development, trade and environmental protection and the analysis of some cases in order to apply the theoretical content to solving problems. It is an exploratory course designed primarily for students in a regular program of International Development. The objectives are:
1) To introduce students to basic concepts and problems of development, trade and environmental protection.
2) To introduce students to citizen’s submissions process under CAFTA-DR.
3) To introduce students to basic concept of case analysis in the frame of FTA’s .
This document outlines the agenda for a luncheon orientation for new students. The agenda covers various topics to help familiarize students with academics and regulations, student support services, technology resources, upcoming events and activities, an overview of the campus and city, and opportunities for questions. Presentations will be given by faculty and staff on these topics, followed by breaks and an optional campus tour.
Presentation given by Chris Bayer, PhD Candidate of Payson Center for International Development at Tulane University Law School to the Global Conflict Minerals Symposium held in Los Angeles, CA on August 22, 2013.
This document outlines the goals, methodology, implementation, and capacity building activities of a survey research project on child labor in cocoa growing areas of West Africa. The goals are to 1) calculate baseline estimates of child labor in cocoa production, 2) conduct nationally representative child labor surveys in 2013/2014, and 3) report differences from 2008/2009 estimates. The methodology involves stratified multi-stage cluster sampling to interview 800 households and stakeholders in 40 clusters. The survey will be implemented in close partnership with research institutions in host countries and governments. Capacity building workshops will train decision makers and technical staff on survey design, data analysis, and monitoring to improve local capacity.
On March 4, 2013, Payson Center for International Development faculty and graduate students gathered at a luncheon sponsored by the Payson Graduate Student Association (PGSA) to present overviews of their grant-based research projects and opportunities for students.
Course 1: Improving the Quality of Life of Children: Health, Work and Education
Course 2: Understanding Child Labor in the Context of Child Rights
Learn more at: http://www.payson.tulane.edu/content/summer-institute
Course 1 Description: Among Asia’s poorest countries (HDI of 157 out of 187 countries), land-locked Nepal lacks universal access to health care, compulsory education and essential legal protections for children. Across the country, children continue to engage in activities that are dangerous to their health and well-being. At the same time, resources for interventions in health and education and for law enforcement are far below of what would be needed. As elsewhere in the developing world, data on the success of existing programs are often lacking and the quantity and the quality of the available information are major issues. This course will study interventions targeted at improving the quality of life of children at the example of Nepal focusing on three broad areas: (a) child health, (b) child work, and (c) availability and quality of education. After an introduction to the strategic planning and management of development programs, the students will be asked to select one of these three topic areas for further specialization. Participants in the course will learn though visits to international and local organizations and project sites, guest speakers, and discussions. They will work in small groups to design and execute a feasibility study for a prevention or intervention program in their selected area of specialization addressing a problem of local and international significance.
Course 2 Description: This course will study the rights and protection of children and provide a conceptual understanding of child labor from child rights perspectives. While governments, international agencies, NGOs, trade unions, the private sector and other civil society organizations have invested significant resources to eliminate child labor, results have been disappointing. Research has shown that children's work is not a uniform phenomenon, the children's age, the type and hours of work performed, and the conditions under which work is undertaken all determine the impact that work can have on children and the types of approaches that need to be adopted for their protection and support. In a context where the International Programme on the Elimination of Child Labor (IPEC) is celebrating its 20th anniversary, the ILO has recognized that a shift of focus towards knowledge development and evidence-based analysis of policies and dissemination is required. At the example of Nepal, this course will explore methodologies to improve the monitoring and evaluation of the implementation of ILO Conventions 182 and 138 in innovative ways that are effective and beneficial to children and may improve the impact of the ILO-IPEC programs themselves.
The document describes a Kenya Summer Institute being held from July 23rd to August 17th, 2012 in Nairobi, Kenya. The institute consists of two courses: 1) "Sustainable Tourism in Africa: A Pathway to Development?" from July 23rd to August 3rd, and 2) "Fleeing from Famine – The Management of Forced Migration" from August 6th to 17th. The courses will include lectures, field trips, and field research projects focused on issues of sustainable tourism and forced migration in Kenya. Students will be housed in a guest house and provided meals during the program.
More from Tulane University Law School Payson Center for International Development (20)
How to Setup Warehouse & Location in Odoo 17 InventoryCeline George
In this slide, we'll explore how to set up warehouses and locations in Odoo 17 Inventory. This will help us manage our stock effectively, track inventory levels, and streamline warehouse operations.
This presentation was provided by Steph Pollock of The American Psychological Association’s Journals Program, and Damita Snow, of The American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), for the initial session of NISO's 2024 Training Series "DEIA in the Scholarly Landscape." Session One: 'Setting Expectations: a DEIA Primer,' was held June 6, 2024.
How to Add Chatter in the odoo 17 ERP ModuleCeline George
In Odoo, the chatter is like a chat tool that helps you work together on records. You can leave notes and track things, making it easier to talk with your team and partners. Inside chatter, all communication history, activity, and changes will be displayed.
This document provides an overview of wound healing, its functions, stages, mechanisms, factors affecting it, and complications.
A wound is a break in the integrity of the skin or tissues, which may be associated with disruption of the structure and function.
Healing is the body’s response to injury in an attempt to restore normal structure and functions.
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Dodd-Frank Section 1502: Significance and Public Policy Implications
1. Dodd-Frank Section 1502:
Significance and Public Policy Implications
Photo credit: Resource Global
Payson International Development Colloquium Series
February 27 2013
Chris Bayer
PhD Candidate
Tulane University
3. That sausage quote
The Prussian minister-president Otto von Bismarck
once said:
"Je weniger die Leute darüber wissen, wie Würste
und Gesetze gemacht werden, desto besser schlafen
sie nachts."
"The less people know about how sausages and laws
are made, the better they sleep at night."
3
4. No country for old men,
or anyone really
• The Second Congo War (1998-2003) and the
instability in its aftermath have killed an
estimated 5 million people, mostly from disease
and starvation
• Deadliest conflict since World War II
• Approximately 400,000 women were raped in
one particularly horrific year - 2006
Source: Robinson, Simon. The Deadliest War In The World. Time Magazine. May 28, 2006.
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1198921,00.html
4
5. For-profit belligerence
• For almost two decades now, the Congolese
government has essentially competed for
control over mines with armed groups
– domestic militias
– foreign armies
– own military
• as there are criminal networks within the Congolese
armed forces (FARDC) accused of conducting their own
mining “operations”
• The DRC is often described as a failed state
5
Source: VOA. http://www.voanews.com/content/tracing-congos-conflict-minerals-101654353/124667.html
6. USDS reports:
• “armed groups and military units in some parts of the region
have killed, raped, tortured, and abducted numerous civilians
and burned and looted their villages in mineral rich areas,
particularly near mines.
• “They have also forced civilians, including children, to mine”
or forced civilians to provide them with funds derived from
the sale of mining
• “Profits from the illicit sale of these minerals are then used to
continue the cycle of conflict, facilitating the purchase of
small arms used to commit abuses, and reducing government
revenues needed to improve security.”
– Robert Hormats
Under Secretary of State for Economic, Energy and Agricultural Affairs
Source: Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/bob-hormats/ending-the-conflict-miner_b_585403.html
6
7. Conflict Mineral Proceeds
• The Enough Project estimated that local militias
made about $180 million from trading in these
minerals in 2009 alone
7
10. An epic looting saga
• Atlantic slave trade starting shortly after the
Portuguese rounded the Gulf of Guinea in 1491
• Kongolese King Affonso I in 1526 wrote to the
King of Portugal: ‘Each day the traders are
kidnapping our people – our land is entirely
depopulated’
• Under the reign of King Leopold II from 1885 to
1908, ivory, rubber, and minerals were
extracted under the threat of losing ones hands
if quotas were not reached
• Second Congo War involved eight African
nations, as well as at least 25 armed groups
• After the fighting, Zimbabwe (Mugabe) for The Atlas of War and Peace,
example was rewarded with daily flights full of Earthscan 2003
minerals
• All along, Congo (Brazzaville) has exported
diamonds derived from the DRC – itself having 10
no domestic production
11. The ghost of
Rwanda 1994
• The 1994 genocide still haunts the region
• After the genocide, an estimated 2 million Hutu spilled
into the Congo
• To this day, between 6,000 to 10,000 (Hutu) Interhamwe
troops fight under the FDLR banner
• Paul Kagame (Rwanda) seems determined:
• (1) to “neutralize” every last one of the Hutu Interhamwe,
• (2) to provide security for Tutsi residing in Kivu, and
• (3) access (and possibly annex) the very lucrative North and
South Kivu districts 11
12. M23
– named after March 2009 peace
treaty, was created by former
rebel troops who claimed the
peace treaty was not implemented M23
– primarily made up of Tutsis
– opposes the Hutu FDLR militia
– are supported by Rwanda
(Kagame)
– has quite effectively leveraged
discontented and unemployed
population in eastern Congo
– control several mining areas in
the territories north of Goma
– sights increasingly on gold – less
“cumbersome” than 3T 12
13. Conflict minerals:
Not the cause – but a factor
• In a 2001 report on the Illegal Exploitation of Natural
Resources in the Congo, the United Nations implicated
MNCs as "the engine of the conflict in the DRC"
• A 2002 UN Panel of Inquiry revealed that a systematic and
intimate relationship exists between economics and
military activity in the DRC
– Tantalum “permitted the Rwandan army to sustain its presence
in the DRC.
– “The army has provided protection and security to the
individuals and companies extracting the mineral.
– “These have made money which is shared with the army, which
in turn continues to provide the enabling environment to
continue exploitation”
13
Source: UN Panel of Inquiry, 2001: Para 130, IHS
14. Cui Bono?
• Not so much the miners
– Wages are kept artificially low through informal / child / forced
labor: the miners earn between $1-5 a day working either for an
armed group or for someone who pays off an armed group
• Very much so the intermediaries (war lords, soldiers,
smugglers), consolidators and exporters (of neighboring
countries)
– The prices of the minerals vary, but in the case of tantalum, for
example, the ore can fetch up to 50 times that which miners earn
• Ongoing exploitation of minerals throughout the Congo wars
kept mineral supplies up and thus international prices lower
• A status quo, mineral-consuming industries were perfectly
content to perpetuate – even throughout the Congo wars
14
15. Catch 22
• Conflict Mineral proceeds flowed into the informal
market or benefitted neighboring countries bypassing
state coffers
– precluding at least the chance for the Congolese state to
become strong enough to assert control over the eastern
regions of the country and its rich natural resources
• Traditional state authority gave way to foreign military
and domestic military might emboldened and enriched
by mineral extraction
• How to get into a virtuous cycle of payment of
royalties/taxes -> state projection of power and security ->
investor confidence -> FDI -> formalizing of informal sector
-> more state revenue?
15
16. The Campaign
• A critical mass of support for conflict-free
minerals gained traction in 2008
• Largely led by civil society organizations such as
the Enough Project, Global Witness, Raise Hope
for Congo, Conflictminerals.org and Congo Siasa
16
18. D-F Section 1502
2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and
Consumer Protection Act Title XV: Miscellaneous
Provisions – Section 1502 Conflict Minerals (P.L.
111-203)
“It is the sense of Congress that the exploitation and
trade of conflict minerals originating in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo is helping to
finance conflict characterized by extreme levels of
violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of the
Congo, particularly sexual- and gender-based
violence, and contributing to an emergency
humanitarian situation therein…”
18
19. Main purpose
• “… we understand Congress’s main purpose to have
been to attempt to inhibit the ability of armed groups
in the Covered Countries to fund their activities by
exploiting the trade in conflict minerals.”
– per the SEC
• “Covered countries” being the “adjoining country” – as
a country that shares an internationally recognized
border with the DRC, which presently includes Angola,
Burundi, Central African Republic, the Republic of the
Congo, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda, and
Zambia
Source: SEC. Final Rule. http://www.sec.gov/rules/final/2012/34-67716.pdf 19
20. 3TG
• “Conflict minerals” are defined as tin, tantalum,
tungsten, gold and their derivatives, commonly
referred to as “3TG”
– Guilty until proven innocent: under the law the term
"conflict minerals" refers to all 3TG regardless if their
provenance
• The DRC accounts for approximately:
– 15-20% of global tantalum ore production
– 6-8% of global tin ore production
– 2-4% of global tungsten ore production
– .3% of global gold production
Source: BSR; Tiffany 20
21. 3TG
• Conflict minerals are as omnipresent as the ballpoint pen – and that is not
just a metaphor:
– Tin is found in solders, food can coatings, shoe soles, fluoride toothpaste
formulations, and chemical applications such as catalysts and stabilizers
– Tungsten, particularly resistant to deforming, is used in tools, aerospace
components, electric lighting, ballpoint pens, electronics, as well as
window heating systems, automobile horns, X-Ray machines, dental
drills, golf clubs, darts, and remote control racing cars
– Tantalum is present in automotive electronics, cell phones, computers,
superalloys for jet and power plant turbines, cutting tools, as well as
surgical implants and prosthetic devices
– Gold, the most malleable and ductile metal, is used in jewelry,
electronics, medical equipment, and aerospace, as well as sensors and
pregnancy tests
• Some products contain concentrated – others trace amounts
21
22. D-F Section 1502 directives
• Requires publicly traded companies in the U.S.
to submit a report to the SEC that includes:
– ‘‘(i) a description of the measures taken by the
person to exercise due diligence on the source and
chain of custody of such minerals, which measures
shall include an independent private sector audit of
such report submitted through the Commission…”
– ‘‘(ii) a description of the products, manufactured or
contracted to be manufactured, that are not DRC
conflict free…”
• Charges the SEC to operationalize the law in the
form of rules 22
23. Comptroller General’s charge
• Requires the Comptroller General to submit to the
appropriate congressional committees a report
that includes:
o An assessment of the effectiveness [of the law] in
promoting peace and security in the Democratic
Republic of the Congo and adjoining countries
• Which may be the closest thing Congress will get
to an official benefit appraisal
23
24. USDS’s charge
• D-F statutory law:
– USDS to submit a strategy to address the linkages
between human rights abuses, armed groups,
mining of conflict minerals, and commercial
products, which entails:
o preparing a “plan to promote peace and security” in
the Congo
o monitoring and stopping “commercial activities
involving the natural resources of the DRC that
contribute to the activities of armed groups and human
rights violations in the DRC”
o Producing “a map of mineral-rich zones, trade routes,
and areas under the control of armed groups in the
Congo”
24
25. Significance
• First time a corporate disclosure law has been
leveraged for a humanitarian purpose abroad
– Unprecedented
• Legal intervention which traverses business,
diplomacy and human development interests
• Global supply-chain ramifications
• Darwinian game-changer:
– The fittest is no longer the company with the most
cut-throat practices and most obscure supply chain
– But the company that is diligent, fosters a clean
brand, has control over its supply chain – and can
prove it 25
26. Significance (cont.)
• A law based on the following logic:
– a requirement to publicly disclose whether or not
conflict minerals were used, and that due diligence was
performed, would change corporate procurement
practices such that the liquidity of armed groups at the
producing end of the supply chain would be curtailed – if
not stifled
• A law in which the principle of the matter
apparently took precedence over cost/benefit
implications
– attempts were made by the SEC to calculate the cost,
whereas no attempt was made to estimate the "benefit"26
27. Implementation
In order to disclose required information, companies
must now perform five principal tasks:
1. Identify products/suppliers
2. Seek out and verify traceability information from those
suppliers
3. Strengthen internal management systems through
supplier engagement and risk management in view of
performing due diligence
4. Instituting the necessary IT systems (to collect supply
chain data and maintain auditable records for the SEC)
5. Auditing and reporting to SEC (and in some cases
commissioning CMR audit)
27
28. Affected industries
• Impacts thousands of manufacturers of all sizes
– ranging from Fortune 500 companies to
companies with $10 million in annual sales –
across multiple industries:
• aerospace
• healthcare
• automotive
• chemicals
• food
• electronics/high-tech
• jewelry
• Corporate interests which, in the aggregate,
exceeding trillions of dollars in revenue per year
28
30. The D-F S1502 play (in 10 acts thus far)
Act 1:In 2008 Enough!, Global Witness et al make
serious noise about the Congo, and drum up a
critical mass of awareness on the issue
Act 2: In 2009 the Congo Conflict Minerals Act is
introduced in the 111th Senate – but is not enacted
Act 3: Senators Sam Brownback (R-KS), Dick Durbin (D-IL)
and Russ Feingold (D-WI) succeed in adding Section
1502 to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act of
2010
Act 4:The SEC comes out with proposed rules, with
a price tag of $71.2 million, clearly not having
considered the full cost implication
Act 5:NAM’s back-of-the-envelope estimation has the
rules cost $9-16 billion 30
31. The D-F S1502 play (in 10 acts thus far)
Act 6: The Chamber of Commerce argues that the proposed
rules are too burdensome and should be withdrawn
Act 7: Tulane, an impartial party, roped into this issue at the
behest of Durbin’s office, publishes its own study in
October 2011, critiquing the NAM and SEC cost
estimates and offers a 3rd economic cost model that
comes to $7.93 billion
Act 8: SEC issues final rules which become law-of-the-land
with its August 2012 vote, relying substantially on
Tulane’s cost drivers, and revising its initial price tag to
$3-4 billion, with the implied admission that their initial
cost estimate was far off the mark
Act 9: Industry gets to work
Act 10:U.S. Chamber of Commerce, NAM and the Business
Roundtable sue the SEC, requesting that the “rule be
modified or set aside in whole or in part” 31
32. The “Tulane model”
Task 3rd model estimation of costs
1. Strengthening internal $26 million for the 5,994 issuers; $5.14
management systems in view of billion for 1st tier suppliers to those
performing due diligence issuers, for a total of $5.17 billion
2. Instituting the necessary IT $884 million for issuers who are small
systems (to collect information companies; $1.68 billion for issuers who
and maintain auditable records for are large companies, for a total of $2.56
the SEC) billion
3. Commissioning CMR audit As only issuers are required to conduct
audits: $81 million for issuers who are
small companies; $126 million for
issuers who are large companies, for a
total of $207 million
Total $7.93 billion
(including internal company labor) 32
33. “Extraneous” costs of transparency
• Suppliers throughout the supply chain are customarily wary of divulging
their suppliers / sources
– Conversely, it gives issuers and top tier companies more information and
control over their supply-chain
• While the American market is the world’s largest, not all roads lead to
Rome
– Cons:
• American competitiveness is potentially “hurt” if the international playing field is not
level
• Non-US bound market supplying companies would not necessarily bear the due
diligence compliance burden
• EU has not passed a similar CM due diligence/disclosure law
– Pros:
• US-bound supply chains traverse the globe many times over – law has a huge multiplier
effect affecting more non-issuers lower down the supply chain than issuers
• Big companies are not however going to bifurcate their supply chains into: (1) US
bound (2) rest-of-the-world bound
• The law makes companies vulnerable to:
– Bad press from activists
• "Nobody wants bad press!”
– Lawsuits from shareholders 33
34. The core of the suit
1st Amendment:
The required disclosure to describe products as “DRC conflict
free” or “not DRC conflict free” violates the reporting
companies’ First Amendment rights by making them engage
in speech against their will
2. Violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (APA):
a. The SEC’s economic impact analysis – an obligation under
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 – was “woefully
inadequate”
b. Benefits not understood
• The SEC itself “admitted it did not determine whether the
rule will provide any benefits to the people of the DRC” –
although it is “one of the costliest rules in SEC history”
Source: Chamber Litigation.
http://www.chamberlitigation.com/sites/default/files/cases/files/2012/Petitioners%20Opening%20Merits%20Brief%20--
34
%20NAM,%20Chamber%20of%20Commerce%20and%20BRT%20v.%20SEC%20(D.C.%20Circuit).pdf
35. Possible counter-arguments
1. Argument
• Uh, did you mean you’ll take the 5th ?
2. Argument
To a:
– SEC’s proposed rules were – compared with Tulane’s
model – off the mark by a factor of 100
– SEC allowed extensive review period – heard all
perspectives and referenced many
– Revised rules – incorporating Tulane’s cost factors – was
only off by a factor of 2
To b:
– It was the Comptroller General’s task to “determine
whether the rule will provide any benefits to the people
of the DRC”
– It was the SEC’s task to operationalize the law 35
36. SEC: Bring it ON!
SEC spokesman John Nester replied by saying:
“… we believe our legal interpretation and
economic analyses are sound and we look
forward to defending the rule that Congress
directed us to write.”
36
37. Has the train left the station?
• Many firms are striving for a conflict-free
supply chain, no matter what's going on in
Washington
– “A lot of companies feel it's good business and the
right thing to do” as lawyer Michael Littenberg points
out
• While others work with trade associations in
private to throw a wrench in the wheel
– See Global Witness’ list noir
Source:
http://www.law.com/corporatecounsel/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202576075043&Business_Groups_File_Challeng
e_to_SEC_Conflict_Minerals_Rule&goback=%2Eanp_4578112_1358531858799_1&slreturn=20130018125937
37
38. Upsides of DFCM implementation
Various U.S.-based companies are saying the following:
• Leveled playing field: same advantage / disadvantage
• Identified opportunities for consolidation (vertical integration) and
supply chain cost reduction
– Potential big savings cutting out middle-men
• Better risk management
– Pre-emptive identification of risk such as reliance on sole-sourced
suppliers
• Improved supply chain performance management in terms of
responsiveness and efficiency
• Better able to respond to customer requests for CM-related
information
• Data and standards with which to conduct future supplier
certification
• Stable supplier policies
• Confidence that company is positively impacting people around the
world
Sources: (1) KPMG. http://www.kpmg.com/US/en/IssuesAndInsights/ArticlesPublications/public- policy-
alerts/Documents/public-policy-alert-15-conflict-mineral.pdf 38
(2) Green Research. The Costs and Benefits of Dodd-Frank Section 1502
39. Early positive deviants
• Apple has announced it will require suppliers to
use audited, conflict-free smelters
• Intel has emerged as a leader for making the first
commitment to producing a conflict-free product
by 2013
• Microsoft and Motorola split from the U.S.
Chamber of Commerce for the Chamber’s efforts
against the regulation
39
41. Conflict Mineral Survey by
The Corporate Council – Nov. 26, 2012
4. How far along are you in preparing for conflict mineral compliance?
(Total responses: n=55)
(select only one)
n=10 (18.18%) We're still in denial
n=37 (67.27%) We've begun to analyze our products, but haven't begun
implementing systems
n=1 (1.82%) We've begun to revise our supply contracts to help
comply
n=3 (5.45%) We are very far along and don't believe compliance will
be a problem
n=1 (1.82%) Don't know
n=3 (5.45%) Not applicable
41
Source: http://www.thecorporatecounsel.net/survey/Nov12_total.htm?goback=%2Eanp_4578112_1358045947753_1
42. Source: Responsible Sourcing Network. What’s Needed: An Overview of Multi-stakeholder and industry Activities to
Achieve Conflict-free Minerals. http://www.sourcingnetwork.org/storage/Minerals_WP.F_print.pdf
42
43. Source: Responsible Sourcing Network. What’s Needed: An Overview of Multi-stakeholder and industry Activities to
Achieve Conflict-free Minerals. http://www.sourcingnetwork.org/storage/Minerals_WP.F_print.pdf 43
44. 3 promising market-based initiatives
closed pipe system (SfH)
• Enhanced traceability / chain of custody
• Good business sense (vertical integration)
bag-and-tag (ITRI)
1. Closing bag and weighing upon filling
2. Tagging (with bar code)
3. Weighing upon receipt
conflict-free smelter
program
Source: http://solutions-network.org/site-solutionsforhope/ 44
46. Is the law working – in the short term?
• The UN Group of Experts on Congo wrote to the
SEC in Oct. 2011 saying:
– “Dodd Frank and due diligence is working!”
– “Since the signing into law of the Dodd Frank act, a
higher proportion then before of tin, tungsten and
tantalum mined in the DRC is not funding conflict.”
Source: http://www.sec.gov/comments/s7-40-10/s74010-346.pdf 46
47. Is the law working (cont.)
The UN Group of Experts highlighted several more points:
• “Production of minerals has shifted to an extent to (largely) non-
conflict areas, such as North Katanga and Maniema”
• Conversely, the effect “in the Kivus, unsurprisingly, has been
increased economic hardship and more smuggling and general
criminalisation of the minerals trade. It has also had a severely
negative impact on provincial government revenues, weakening
governance capacity”
• Criminal networks continue to exist within the Congolese army
• Thousands of miners have found work in the neighboring provinces of
Maniema and northern Katanga
• The FDLR’s control of mines has decreased over the past year,
particularly in tin, tantalum, and tungsten mines
• Congolese army criminal networks have seen their profits in the 3Ts
fall over the past year
• Gold is still funding armed groups in the Congo (easier to smuggle)
Source: http://www.sec.gov/comments/s7-40-10/s74010-346.pdf 47
48. Caveat!
• Due diligence and “buying peace” through
targeted purchasing power is only ONE –
albeit a very important – measure among
many of what should be a broader portfolio of
policies and interventions to address this
multi-faceted problem
– Even if revenue doesn’t fuel the conflict, what’s
next?
• Otherwise, at best, this exercise will only serve
to shelve our moral "guilt" by having clean
cellphones 48
49. State Department’s approach
• Endorsement of OECD’s Due Diligence Guidelines
• Public-Private Alliance for Responsible Minerals Trade
(PPA)
– sponsored by USDS and USAID in partnership with leading
companies and civil society to support compliance with
Section 1502
– seeks to advance “on the ground” solutions in the DRC and
to demonstrate that it is possible to secure legitimate
minerals from the DRC
• Statement of July 2011:
– encouraged compliance with Section 1502
– noted possible U.N. sanctions for individuals or entities
that support the armed conflict and human rights abuses
in the DRC
Source: www.resolv.org/site-ppa 49
50. USAID
• Community Recovery and Livelihoods Project
(CRLP)
• A $20 million livelihoods project in eastern Congo
• Four-year program (2012-2016) in the Kivus and
Orientale provinces
• Focused on people affected by sexual violence
and the conflict minerals trade
• Aims to reach at least 80,000 people
• After all, durable peace does fundamentally hinge
on the development of sustainable livelihoods
50
51. Fixing the Congo - Security
• Assign a highly experienced United Nations envoy to the Congo by the secretary-
general to help broaden and strengthen the peace process
– Envoy could work with the African Union in constructing a process that involves civil society and
political parties from eastern Congo to deal with the war’s root economic causes
– Have carrots (e.g. FDI guarantees) and sticks (sanctions)
• Beef up U.N. presence that has the reach to stabilize the vast territories of the DRC
– 20,000 are apparently not enough to ensure a tenable peace
– Deploy the drones!
• Open International Criminal Court cases against parties responsible for
orchestrating or financing war crimes to help break the cycle of deadly impunity
• Conduct comprehensive demilitarization with livelihood programs for ex-
combatants
• Build capacity and pay salaries – and actually pay! – to military, police and civil
service, so that their livelihoods don’t depend on embezzlement and extortion
• Ethnic military integration of military and police as Kagame has done in Rwanda
– Introduce meritocratic systems to recruitment and promotions
• Deploy UN drones
51
Note: includes Willet Weeks and John Pendergast’s recommendations
52. Fixing the Congo –
sanction militia supporters
• Secure assurances by its neighbors that they will cease
relations with militias in the Congo
• Scale up sanctions, if Rwanda’s support of M23 rebels
continues
– It might take more than symbolic cuts to make a meaningful
impact
• Overall, Rwanda receives close to $900m annually from external
sources
• The US gives Rwanda annually $196m - of this amount only $200,000
was cut
• The UK withheld £21m of its budget support out of £75m pound
sterling it gives Rwanda annually
• Involvement of Eastern DRC earns them tenfold from illicit trade in
minerals
52
Source: http://www.inyenyerinews.org/amakuru-2/foreign-policy-in-rwanda-a-discussion-with-deo-lukyamuzi/
53. Fixing the Congo – markets
• Guarantee concessions and business licenses to Rwandan and Ugandan
companies
– Integrating economies such that war would be too expensive – à la the European
Coal and Steel Community (ECSC)
– Rwanda and Uganda are natural trading partners who also offer mineral processing
capacity
• Make vast investments in infrastructure, particularly roads, the dismal
lack of which incubates disorder
– Could be through state-guaranteed (EXIM) deals such as the recent $6-9 billion China
concessions-for-infrastructure deal
• Promote government-backed FDI
– Professionalize upstream supply chain sector
• Formalize the extraction of the Congo’s vast mineral resources through
regulation, transparency, equitable taxation, verified auctions, etc.
53
Note: includes Willet Weeks and John Pendergast’s recommendations
54. Fixing the Congo – public sphere
• Strengthen state institutions in the context of
what is essentially a failed state
– Reinforce pillars of democracy
• Clean up corruption as was done in Georgia
EITI (http://eiti.org/node/284/reports)
– Revive democratic participation in Congo’s
communities and decentralize important functions to
local representative leaders
– Also focus on the provision of basic services
• Immigration / deportation
– After the 1994 genocide in Rwanda, largely by the
Hutus against the Tutsis, nearly two million Hutu
refugees fled a counter-offensive pouring across the
54
border into neighboring Congo
55. D-F Section 1502 a fluke?
• Some would posit it becoming law a fluke
because of the unusual circumstances in the
aftermath of the Financial Crisis of 2007-2008
• The SEC vote was a narrow 3-2 – two
commissioners did not approve the rule
• The law set a precedent in line with a greater
emerging pattern
Source: SEC. http://www.sec.gov/news/speech/2012/spch082212dmg-minerals.htm
55
56. A few milestones of disclosure law
• Securities Exchange Act of 1934
– to help the symmetry of information assumption along,
Congress crafted a mandatory disclosure process in which
companies make information public that investors would
find pertinent to making investment decisions
• Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975
– provides to the public loan data that can be used to assist:
• in determining whether financial institutions are serving the
housing needs of their communities
• in distributing public-sector investments in identifying possible
discriminatory lending patterns
• Sarbanes–Oxley Act of 2002
– requires internal controls for assuring accuracy of financial
reports
– mandates enhanced financial disclosures
56
57. The two other 2010
“Specialized Corporate Disclosure” laws
• Section 1503 requires any reporting issuer that is a mine
operator, or has a subsidiary that is an operator, to disclose
to the SEC information related to health and safety
violations, including the number of certain violations,
orders, and citations received from the Mine Safety and
Health Administration (MSHA)
• Section 1504 requires reporting issuers engaged in the
commercial development of oil, natural gas, or minerals to
disclose in an annual report certain payments made to the
United States or a foreign government
– Under the new “Disclosure of Payments by Resource Extraction
Issuers” Rule adopted in late August 2012, issuers must disclose
all payments (or aggregation of related payments) of $100,000
or more to foreign (and U.S.) governments for such activities
57
Source: SEC. http://www.sec.gov/spotlight/dodd-frank/speccorpdisclosure.shtml
58. Global Compact
Global Compact, a 1999 UN-spearheaded multi-
stakeholder initiative resulting in the formulation of 10 CSR
principles:
Principle 1
• Businesses should support and respect the protection of
internationally proclaimed human rights within their
sphere of influence.
Principle 2
• Businesses should ensure that their own operations are
not complicit in human rights abuses.
– DO NO HARM! - Don’t do business with human rights
violators 58
59. Long-term engagement prospects
• Engaging the Congo is in our national interest
o DRC is under-leveraged – offers high return on the dollar
e.g. the China deal: $ 6 billion worth of infrastructure in exchange for $50 billion dollars
worth of minerals – which translates to a profit of 833%
o One estimation has the DRC’s mineral deposits worth $24 trillion
o The Congo rainforest is the world’s second largest carbon sink
o If Afghanistan taught us anything is that the world can’t afford failed
states
• Relative security conditions a prerequisite for constructive
engagement
o Risk of engagement are high
Security, in spite of the 17,000 UN troops in the Congo
chaotic regulatory environment / broken contracts
o Not deterring China / India
59
60. Lessons thus far…
• Due diligence and ethical sourcing should be part of the day-to-
day corporate modus operandi
– Had the 3TG-based sectors done it all along, this law wouldn’t exist
• If you are an at-risk industry: try your level best to self-regulate
in order to reduce legislative and reputational vulnerability –
otherwise you could get Dodd-Franked
• If you are a concerned NGO: aggressive campaigning and
lobbying works
– Reputational risk is an incredibly big threat – especially in light of web 2.0
• U.S. consumer is increasingly aware
• ease and speed of voicing/spreading opinions is growing even faster
• Sunshine law as applied to international affairs is a shiny new
tool brandished by government (and civil society actors who
push for it)
• A “crisis” in the U.S. financial system was used to induce a
“crisis” in mineral-based industries – prompting decisive reform60
61. More lessons …
• Legislative due diligence: to reduce ambiguity (uncertainty)
and discord (potential litigation), commissioning an
independent, 3rd party (preferably academic institution) to
conduct a 360° cost-benefit analysis before a law is passed
should be considered good public policy
• to help government agencies in their rule drafting
• to predict nature and scale of impact
• to plan according to projected impact
– Universities should pro-actively offer such services
– Could be commissioned by a tasked congressional committee
inviting experts representing a variety of stakeholders, with drafts
and public comments
• It truly is a chain: a new policy yank on the manufacturer end is
felt all the way down the supply chain
– Yes, even in China
• China for example “has stopped purchasing tantalum on the spot market,
because of the conflict minerals legislation... ”
61
Source: MetalMiner. http://agmetalminer.com/2011/01/20/tantalum-prices-about-through-the-roof/
62. Hitting that regulatory sweet spot
• If the impact of D-F Section 1502 proves to be
little, is there another approach that would
promise a greater impact to take the
“conflict” out of minerals?
and
• more generally speaking, how can one hit the
regulatory sweet spot on similarly complex
human rights / humanitarian issues
perpetuated through commodity extraction?
– incentivizing good behavior all around
– minimizing regulatory burden for the private as
well as the public sectors 62
63. Sector-specific regulation triage
Degree of regulatory burden & reputational risk
1st line:
1. Industry self-regulation and enforcement
(B2B accountability, trade association-led)
2nd line:
2. Public-private protocol – with SMART targets
(private certification, 3rd party oversight)
3rd line:
3. International gov.-backed certification scheme
(hard law, 3rd party supply chain audits)
4th line:
4. Verified corporate due diligence and disclosure
(hard law, 3rd party audits)
5th line:
5. Sanctions / blacklists
(backed by trade embargoes, GATT)
63
64. Conflict – commodity link
• In the last 60 years, at least 40 per cent of all
intrastate conflicts had a link to natural resources
– this link doubles the risk of a conflict relapse in the first five years
• as per the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP)
• Since 1990, at least 18 violent conflicts have been
fuelled by the exploitation of natural resources
– whether ‘high-value’ resources like timber, diamonds, gold,
minerals and oil
– or scarce ones like fertile land and water
• With how many other armed groups, with “resource
imperatives” causing human rights violations, are we
indirectly doing business?
64
Source: UNEP. http://postconflict.unep.ch/publications/pcdmb_policy_01.pdf
68. Grassroots action
• Leverage your own sphere of influence
– talk about it and use social media
– it’s the critical mass that makes or breaks…
• Use your own purchasing power wisely
– check out: http://www.raisehopeforcongo.org/companyrankings
• What is Tulane’s investment policy on Conflict Minerals?
• Start a petition at change.org targeting a non-performing company, or
your favorite gadget manufacturer, recommending to:
– actually do due diligence and engaging the promising market-based
solutions that have emerged in the Congo
– pass on the costs to the consumer: “I’d be happy to pay the few extra
dollars/cents per unit knowing that the materials in my product was
responsibly sourced and produced”
• Recycle electronics
• Launch a “buy peace” campaign
– driving home the point that through purchasing power one can make
important contributions to peace
– Tulane did participate in the Conflict Free Campus campaign – kudos!
• Follow the issue 68
– e.g. through Google alerts
70. Q&A
Q: Disclosure law acts as a de-facto sanction against entire
countries!
A1: That’s not what the UN Group of experts found in the Congo
A2: Lots of companies continue to responsibly source from DRC
using technology-enhanced traceability
A3: One can sub-nationally target and monitor good and bad actors
(companies, militaries, smugglers, etc.)
Q. Disclosure law opens the door for litigation – which is
expensive for everyone and is therefore not the best way to
"direct" or "move" corporate behavior
A: Indeed – sunshine law should be one of the last legal bids in the
array of public policy options
Q. Securing the conflict area, getting the diplomacy right
(esp. with Kagame and Museveni), and then applying as much
public health as possible would be a much more direct route
A: Yes, but that wouldn’t address the economics – the bloody money
trail 70