Apple hit by Belgian investigation over ‘blood minerals’ from Congo

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Belgium has launched a criminal investigation into allegations that Apple knowingly sourced “blood minerals” from the Democratic Republic of Congo, in what lawyers for the Central African country are calling a “massive money laundering and greenwashing operation.”

In December, the Democratic Republic of Congo filed criminal charges in Belgium and France against subsidiaries of the U.S. tech giant, alleging they used minerals supplied by armed groups that committed atrocities in eastern Congo.

Lawyers working for the Democratic Republic of Congo said Belgian prosecutors last week appointed an investigative judge to oversee the investigation and be responsible for issuing arrest warrants, wiretaps and raids to investigate the case. They were still waiting for a decision from France, where the process was slower.

“This is the first step that shows that the prosecutor is taking the case very seriously,” said Christophe Marchand, the lawyer who prepared the case in Belgium, which colonized Congo at the beginning of the 20th century with disastrous consequences.

Brussels prosecutors did not respond to a request for comment. Apple declined to comment for this story. The company previously said it “strongly disputes” the claims and is “deeply committed to responsible sourcing of minerals” such as coltan, a critical mineral used in its iPhones and other electronic devices and of which more is becoming available than half of the world’s reserves are located in the Congo.

The criminal complaint alleges that Apple buys tantalum, an ore derived from coltan, as well as tin, tungsten and gold – the so-called 3TG minerals – from mines whose profits fuel the war in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and promote child labor and environmental degradation. Millions of people have been displaced by fighting in which rape and killings of civilians are commonplace.

Many of the minerals are proven to come from mines in non-conflict areas or from Rwanda. But the complaint alleges that the so-called “bag and mark” certification process that Apple and other electronics giants rely on is deeply flawed and that minerals labeled as coming from Rwanda actually come from Congolese mines.

“There is not a technology company in the world that doesn’t know that everything bought in Rwanda is 90 percent Congolese,” Robert Amsterdam, whose law firm represents the Democratic Republic of Congo, told the Financial Times.

In one report This month, the United Nations said Rwandan-backed rebels in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo “fraudulently” exported at least 150 tons of coltan to Rwanda last year, resulting in the “largest contamination” of the region’s mineral supply chain on record have.

M23 rebels – which the UN, US, EU and Congo say are backed by Rwanda – have seized control of many of the key mines, the report said, and “set up a parallel administration that controls mining activities, Trade, transport and taxation of mines controlled. “Minerals produced”.

Kigali has consistently denied supporting the M23 rebels or benefiting from the $1 billion a year that Kinshasa says it loses to mineral smuggling.

In a March 2024 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Apple said: “We have found no reasonable basis to conclude that any of 3TG’s smelters or refiners have been identified as being in our supply chain.” . “directly or indirectly finances or supports armed groups in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

But in December, Apple expressed concern that it was “no longer possible for independent auditors or industry certification mechanisms to perform the due diligence necessary to meet our high standards” and had informed its suppliers that it would stop sourcing 3TG metals from either the Democratic Republic of the country from Congo or Rwanda.

Amsterdam described the new procurement decision as conclusive evidence. “It is an admission that supply chains are fundamentally infiltrated with counterfeit minerals,” he said.

Apple is committed to increasing the use of recycled minerals in its products and has set a goal of using 100 percent recycled cobalt in its batteries by this year.

Separately, lawyers working for the Democratic Republic of Congo have tried to involve the EU in the fight against Apple by sending a letter to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, in which she criticized the bloc’s agreement signed last February Rwanda described sustainable procurement of critical minerals as a “farce”.

“The EU has signed a memorandum of understanding with Rwanda to develop its 3TG mineral programs, even though anyone with a secondary education knows that Rwanda does not have the minerals,” Amsterdam said. “It’s not just Apple, but the EU itself that is engaging in this sophistry.”

A spokesman for the commission said it was “seriously committed to ensuring transparency and traceability of critical raw materials at both bilateral and multinational levels.”

One of the main objectives of the agreement with Rwanda is to “strengthen the fight against illegal trade in minerals,” they added.