Congo on 60 Minutes
If you missed it on Sunday night, check out the 60 Minutes feature on the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
And be sure to tell us what you thought of the feature by commenting on this post!
A weekly summary of the most important developments in the conflicts we see on the ground in Burma, Congo, Sudan, and beyond:
The Fall 2009 Pledge2Protect conference held in Washington DC was off the hook; I have never been more proud of STAND. I was able to understand so much material, digest many perspectives and in the end left very educated, challenged and encouraged.
Andrew Hedlund at Arizona State just published a great article in ASU’s State Press about the role of minerals in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo and current legislation to address it. Read on to learn more and find out how you can take action.
Financing a calamity with a vibrating cell phone
Andrew Hedlund
Monday, November 23, 2009
The Democratic Republic of the Congo houses an incredibly violent and heart-wrenching conflict.
From December 1-7, we’re asking thousands of people across the country to pledge to prevent genocide. But after the Pledge2Protect conference in early November, dozens of participants hit the streets to start collecting pledges. Vinay Nayak, a high school student in Illinois and the Great Lakes Regional Outreach Coordinator, blogged about his experience:
Yesterday, Representatives Jim McDermott (D-WA), Frank Wolf (R-VA), and Barney Frank (D-MA), introduced the Conflict Minerals Trade Act (H.R. 4128). If passed into law, the bill would help increase transparency in industries – i.e. the electronics industry – that are major consumers of minerals whose illegal trade is fueling ongoing conflict in eastern DR Congo.
This Wednesday, the Sudan Tribune reported that the Government of Sudan (GoS) “wil begin closing down the camps for the displaced populations in the war torn region of Darfur next year.” The Government would essentially shut down the camps and forcibly relocate the displaced Darfuris to their home villages or to other new “housing complexes”.
Back at school in Cambridge, MA and writing from Lowell House D-hall. I finally found a second to catch my breath and reflect on what was truly a life changing weekend.
I have been to A LOT of of STAND conferences – no surprise since I first got involved in STAND in 2006, way back when I was a junior at Northwestern University in Chicago. Back then, STAND was a start-up run by students who were on fire about ending genocide, but who often didn’t have the resources we needed to coordinate large-scale national events. Sitting here today, just three years later, it’s crazy and inspiring to think about the differences.