Enough Project Media Advisory
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Carine Umuhumuza, [email protected], 202-478-5314
Today, a United States district court of appeals ruled that part of the SEC's conflict minerals rule requiring companies to disclose whether or not they use conflict minerals from the Democratic Republic of Congo and surrounding countries is unconstitutional.
Enough Project Policy Associate Holly Dranginis said:
"The appeals court's ruling on the first amendment issue is a major step backward for atrocity prevention in the Great Lakes region of Africa and corporate accountability in the United States.. Requiring companies to come clean about whether their materials fuel armed violence is constitutional and reflective of our intolerance as a society for turning a blind eye to human suffering. The court's proposal that a conflict-free determination is ideological is unfounded and undercuts the power of society's growing awareness that global markets and security in fragile states are in fact linked.
As the court said today, "minerals do not fight conflict." But they do fund conflict, a fact that drove Congress and a major public movement to establish this rule in the first place. The SEC should appeal today's ruling for the conflict minerals rule to stay in tact, ensuring companies continue the good work they began when the conflict minerals rule was created."
Enough Project Senior Policy Analyst Sasha Lezhnev said:
"The law is already eating away at the finances of warlords in Congo, with over two-thirds of tin, tantalum, and tungsten mines now free of armed groups. While the SEC rule is being decided by the courts, consumers and investors are more aware than ever about conflict minerals and will be holding companies accountable for what they are or are not doing on conflict minerals."
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The Enough Project is a project of the Center for American Progress to end genocide and crimes against humanity. Founded in 2007, Enough focuses on the crises in Sudan, South Sudan, eastern Congo, and areas affected by the Lord’s Resistance Army. Enough conducts intensive field research, develops practical policies to address these crises, and shares sensible tools to empower citizens and groups working for change. To learn more about Enough, go to www.enoughproject.org.