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Belgium has launched a criminal investigation into allegations that Apple found “blood minerals” in the Democratic Republic of Congo, in what lawyers for the central African country called “a massive operation of laundry and greenwashing”.
In December, the DRC filed criminal complaints in Belgium and France against the American tech group, alleging that they use minerals supplied by armed groups committing atrocities in eastern Congo.
Lawyers working for the DRC said Belgian prosecutors appointed an investigative judge last week – which oversees investigations and is responsible for issuing arrest warrants, wiretaps and searches – to review the case. They were still waiting for a decision from France, where the process was slow.
“This is the first step that shows that the prosecutor is taking this case seriously,” said Christophe Marchand, a lawyer who prepared the case in Belgium, which seized Congo with disastrous results at the beginning of the 20th century.
The Brussels prosecutors' office did not respond to a request for comment. apple declined to comment for this story. It previously said it “strongly disputes” the claims and was “deeply committed to responsible sourcing of minerals” such as coltan, an important mineral used in its iPhones and other electronics, where more than half of the world's deposits are in Congo.
The criminal complaint alleges that Apple buys tantalum, an ore extracted from coltan, and tin, tungsten and gold—called 3TG minerals—from the lucrative mines that fueled the war in eastern DRC and fueled the exploitation. of children and environmental degradation. Millions of people have been displaced by the fighting, where rape and murder are common.
Most of the minerals are certified to come from mines in conflict-free areas or from Rwanda. But the complaint alleges that the so-called “bagging and tagging” certification system that Apple and other electronics giants rely on is seriously flawed and that minerals labeled as coming from Rwanda are, in fact, taken from mines in the Congo.
“There is no technology company on Earth that doesn't know that everything bought in Rwanda is 90 percent sure to be Congolese,” Robert Amsterdam, who represents the DRC, told the Financial Times.
In a report This month, the UN said Rwandan-backed rebels in eastern DRC “fraudulently shipped” at least 150 tonnes of coltan to Rwanda last year, leading to what it called the “biggest contamination” of the mineral supply chain on record.
The rebels of M23 – which the UN, the US, the EU and the Congo say are supported by Rwanda – said, this report, they have gained control of several important mines, “to establish a coherent administration that controls mining activities, trade, transport and taxation of mines. minerals produced”.
Kigali has consistently denied supporting the M23 rebels or benefiting from what Kinshasa says is $1bn a year in illegal mining.
In a March 2024 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Apple said: “We have not found a solid basis to conclude that any of the smelters or refiners of 3TG intend to be in our supply chain. . . directly or indirectly or assisting armed groups in the DRC.”
But in December, Apple said it was concerned that “it is no longer possible for independent auditors or industry assurance mechanisms to do the due diligence required to meet our high standards” and notified its suppliers to stop sourcing 3TG steel from the DRC or Rwanda. .
Amsterdam described the new search decision as a smoking gun. “It is also acceptable that supply chains are basically imported with fake minerals,” he said.
Apple has sought to increase the use of recycled minerals in its products, saying it aims to get 100 percent recycled cobalt from batteries this year.
In contrast, lawyers working for the DRC sought to draw the EU into the fight against Apple by sending a letter to Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, showing as a “farce” the bloc's agreement with Rwanda, which was signed last February. sustainable extraction of essential minerals.
“The EU has signed an MOU with Rwanda to develop their 3TG mineral programs when anyone who goes to high school knows that Rwanda has no minerals,” Amsterdam said. Not only Apple but the EU itself is involved in this strategy.
A spokesman for the commission said it was “seriously committed to ensuring transparency and traceability of the most important raw materials at the bilateral and international level”.
One of the main objectives of its agreement with Rwanda was to “strengthen the fight against the illegal trade in minerals”, they added.