Heart of Africa still bleeding, warn Greens

NEW GLASGOW – The Green Party of Canada is demanding greater attention to ongoing and systemic violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and called on the Harper government to show real leadership by enhancing governmental oversight for Canadian extractive companies operating in developing countries.

The conflict in the DRC has been described as “Africa’s World War”, with the estimated five million civilian deaths in the past ten years making it the deadliest conflict to civilians since World War II. The DRC’s gold, copper, coltan, and diamond deposits make Canadian mining corporations a significant presence in the unstable region.

“Women and children continue to suffer the most as thousands are sexually assaulted and deprived of basic health and education services,” said Green Party leader Elizabeth May. “This tragedy is being ignored by western industrialized nations who are at the same time greatly benefiting from the exploitation of the DRC’s rich natural resources. As a result, the DRC has become one of the world’s poorest nations, the home of ongoing serious human rights abuses, and the victim of devastating destruction of natural resources.”

The Green Party is calling on the Harper government to implement recommendations in the 2007 Advisory Report from the National Roundtables on Corporate Social Responsibility. The recommendations would set out clear standards and reporting obligations for Canadian corporations and establish a framework for investigating and evaluating complaints from affected communities.

“The DRC’s natural resources have never been managed in an accountable and sustainable manner,” said International Affairs critic Eric Walton. “The Congolese people deserve to enjoy benefits from their country’s wealth – not to be held hostage to destructive exploitative patterns established through hundreds of years of colonialism.”

The Greens are also calling for the creation of an oversight board for natural resources involving international donors, Congolese authorities, and civil society that can work to eliminate bribes and centralize information and complaints regarding the mining and forestry sectors. As was done in Cambodia, international NGOs could then be hired to follow up on the implementation of reform in these sectors and monitor compliance.

“The situation in the DRC is dire and Canadians bear the responsibility of responding with effective and efficient peace-building efforts,” said Mr. Walton. “As world-leaders in the mining industry, Canadians are well-placed to ensure transnational mining corporations in the DRC begin to operate according to a high standard of corporate responsibility.”

The Advisory Report from the National Roundtables on Corporate Social Responsibility can be found here: http://geo.international.gc.ca/cip-pic/library/Adv...