A bill has been proposed in the U.S. Congress to ban the import of cobalt from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). This is due to allegations that the Chinese Communist Party, which owns 90% of the DRC’s cobalt mines, is exploiting child labor and forced labor.
According to industry sources, on the 18th, Congressman Chris Smith, who chairs the House Global Human Rights Subcommittee, introduced a bill known as HR 7891, the ‘Stop China’s Exploitation of Forced and Child Labor in the Cobalt Mining Industry Act.’
HR 7891 aims to understand the extent of forced and child labor in the DRC’s cobalt mining industry through a comprehensive investigation by the U.S. Forced Labor Enforcement Task Force. Additionally, the bill aims to implement new strategies to prevent the entry of cobalt mined by forced labor into the U.S. market.
Congressman Smith stated, “The Chinese Communist Party completely controls every stage of the DRC’s cobalt supply chain,” and “They are profiting from child and forced labor used to extract cobalt in the DRC and advance their so-called ‘green economy.”
He further emphasized, “The U.S. must stop tolerating the horrific exploitation that the Chinese Communist Party is perpetrating against children as young as six and reduce our dependence on Xi Jinping’s brutal dictatorship.”
Partially based on testimonies from a November congressional hearing chaired by Congressman Smith is HR 7891. The hearing revealed the Chinese Communist Party’s exploitation of children and forced laborers.
Father Rigobert Minani Bihuzo attended the hearing and revealed, “Artisanal and small-scale mines number 1,000 from the Ituri region to Lake Tanganyika, with an estimated 200,000 artisanal miners. This includes thousands of children and pregnant women.”
He added, “Many artisanal mines are narrow tunnels dug into the ground, and children are mining cobalt and other minerals using only their hands or basic tools, without any protective equipment. The majority are being forced into the tunnels.”
Congressman Jason Smith, chairman of the House Subcommittee on Legislative Review, has listened to various opinions on HR 7891 and plans to fast-track it for a vote.
Chairman Smith evaluated, “The U.S. has long fought to eradicate child and adult forced labor, but cobalt, which is essential to our battery technology, is being unethically mined through forced labor under Chinese control. This bill is important to block materials contaminated by inhumane labor practices from entering the U.S.”
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