and a lifetime working that's part of the answer to understand how it affects the knights with still remain before we can truly say that we are in the say, tell x ray, counting the cost on jesse or the world's most valuable company. apple is being sued by democratic republic of congo, the tech johns accused of using a legally mind, minerals and products like all the phones. so the white apple denies the claim. what's behind this legal action? this is inside story, the hello again, i can change phase. this is one of the most successful consumer products of oldtime, the apple iphone. but now it's of the center of a lawsuit of a, some of the materials used to make it. apple is being sued by democratic republic

of congo, d. c. a claims that it uses a legally mind, minerals, iphones, i pads, and other products, cells around the world to the company, denies those allegations and said this week it's told supplies, they mustn't use such mineral sourced from the d. c or a wanda. but the aussies lawyers claim that apple is complicit in criminal activity by using minerals quote, pillaged from the d. r c alone that through international supply chains. years of conflict in mining areas in easton, d. c, have let the millions of people being killed or forced to leave the homes. um, groups of used income from mining to buy weapons under two's of using children in mines and counting out human rights abuses. awful insistent, official filings with us so far it is, it really doesn't rigorously audits, it's supplies and as drops those who don't comply. so why is this action being taken? now, how am i to play out will go to those issues without guessing the moment. but 1st,

this report from katia lopez hold a young. the mining and the democratic republic of congo is big business. many of the minerals used to make computers and mobile phones sold around the world are found here. the industry has long been profitable, but also controversial. now types julian, apple is part of the controversy. criminal complaints have been filed against a subsidy aries in france and belgium. with the d. r. c, accusing the tech guy and of knowingly buying minerals, gathered through a legal means and conflicts zones. apple denies the accusations, and the statement, it says as conflict in the region escalated earlier this year, we notified our suppliers that their smelters and refiners must have spent sourcing $1010.00, slim, tungsten, and gold. from the d, r. c. and rwanda. competition for minerals is one of the main drivers of conflict

in the d r. c. since the 19 ninety's, the mining court last and the east happened, devastated by fighting between arm groups some allegedly that by neighboring rolanda and the congolese military rights group say some are to sit on mines, are run by arms groups involved and massacres of civilians rapes loading and other crimes. thousands of civilians happen forced from their homes. armed groups have long been its use of fighting for control of mines and using prophets to finance their operations. in analysts say fighting is likely to continue as long as there is demand. capielo pistol again, also 0 for insight story. well, let's discuss this further and bring, you know, i guess today in london we have robot,

amsterdam and international lawyer who's representing the democratic republic of come go in this case and go to an eastern d. c. i land connie is a journalist who's covered the conflict for more than 15 years. and in cape town in south africa. gregory and timber salter is a consultant who specializes in natural results, government, and served on the u. n. good experts for the democratic republic of congo. now you'll see we don't have any one rep presenting apple today on our panel. we reached out to apple, but they have not responded to us. let me start up with you. well, but you are the lawyer in this case for the democratic republic of congo. apple denies all your obligations, but explained to me, why has the country decides to bring this case now? as well as centrally apples, the behavior and the the activity. but apple engages in use of what we alleged funds the rebels inside the congo we on behalf of the government are

looking at the funding of the rebellion that is going on, sponsored by rolanda. and essentially the allegation that apple is in any way on where we would have to mean that a trillion dollar company hasn't bothered to read any un reports that have come out in the last decade and a half buried. there is simply the, the defense of ignorance does not work in the situation and the government of a congo having not been contacted by apple after we sent letters in, in april of this year, setting out in detail our complaint. i felt that there was absolutely no other choice, but to open up a large number of legal actions. let's look at some of the things that we're going to be talking about so, so everyone is aware of, of some of the issues involved and correctly. i'd like to start with you,

let's talk about these minerals that are used ultimately when that when eventually they put into a mobile phone. they called the 3 tea minerals, just explain what we're talking about here. so the 3 tvs, tungsten, $10.10 to them. now, um, 10 gas shoes for a lot more things than not about 5 years. but it is used in the, in making the 2nd boards and called time colombo, 12 lights which is the form in which the tend to them comes is as a super conductor. it conducts high volume, so large amounts of electric pulses of coal, thomas the old, the old times, the old. yeah. is that right? yes. okay, tom tom and so we're gonna, we're gonna hit both of those to you in this discussion. yep. okay. so and, and congo, and to a lesser extent, rewind to, it has a large percentage at the wells, us resort space of 10 to,

to okay. i love, i think we will. so also now many of us throughout is there will be aware of this, but it will also need to get the context in terms of the d. c. your country. you are a journalist that you will ones forced to be a child soldier. the figures are the figures, no one's been counting properly, but since 1998 more than 6000000 people have died. as a result of the conflict of not all of them directly from the will but from hunger and disease. just tell us how bad the conflict has been in your country and how it is still continuing right now. thank you very much again for me in this program. yeah, for sure. the corporate state of anybody, when you're talking about devices. this is, this is a big guy, big boy, us the one of the not being the coffee and went to school in the same situation and became

a jeweler is covered in for almost 15 years today. this includes towels on people. light has been destroyed. sounds like to me with the room was set up again in the different conflict in the different areas. those who would not have the same just to go back to school like me. i had to continue or somehow even i'm in a comment. here's a, here's the sense additional words not for example. yeah, go my, well, yeah, we have on with the people they how does this sound? and the majority of them are coming from this areas where people were out. and now when you're talking about a minute, those are those videos on that because the munitions showing this terrible decision, you know, which we are, we are living in right now. now here it is. uh not uh we, we've here of crimes and atrocities over the years mode the salt torture. right. those things are still going on on a daily basis. yes. this is

a sort of suggestion, dennis, i've been bullied daily or week so it might be because you are very bored when you're talking to women. those in charge of one of the suggestion of a rep, for example. we may need to come, for example, and i want to go my yeah, we are at least a to we met with every weeks not to because yeah, now you or the 1st was there was still going on because this before they need to solve, i adapted lives economy in the morning go into such for the for the for the. 1 or the videotape, was it all, you know, the minutes, these are the women and we did the did the by the, on the roof was now bush by the, on the some of the strongest side. and those really was no hold on that comes around the city. so these, we met the sometimes india and most of the set of guys became the fighting for

them. but being lived by different people. so every day when you're going to come, when you're asking these people that came of one to, to, to say, i want to talk to. busy we met, that kindly tells all of them they want. you just didn't want to tell you the story . you still don't want to tell you how she was work to come, for example, because she still does a job shelter. maybe they run away from the village is the last week or they knew the show, the listing booked up. it's reading every day, even in the why it's not about to do. it's the imagine then that the, the life for me, the people we don't serve, does it all this out. so you love the story of like, this is many days i would be. so it's showing me that, as i said before, this cannot develop which seem to continue the love what he is i'm talking put to use because it's almost 15 years that i'm covering the stories. that is the same story. it is made by change it. okay. totally busy. yeah. okay, let me bring in gregory, link full me,

those and groups to the minerals. i know that in the bottom and robot move on to link those minerals to the mobile phone, supply chain in these little see, but can you explain to me why these are groups and the minerals are linked and how it all works and how, how the proceeds of minerals are funding this will yeah. so you have a number of mineral deposits. all libraries come good um which are accessible by autism. oh mine is that is mine is who you know what with their hands and picks and shovels that i really haven't much machinery. now i'm groups. if that controlling that territory, they might, they want to extract what you might call rents from these mines. maybe on the, the roots out, they put out the barrier and they came and they get a tax. so they take a percentage of the bags, where it might be that the come on to says, okay, the on this day of the week, everybody's working for me. well,

he's got some pits in the area which his soldiers, his troops are operating. i should say, i mean, the company's armies been involved with this to a number of the groups with weapons, whether the state for and t state of practice, the same process. so that's why this, how i did or by due diligence came about, but we were saying, but i was on the un, we were saying to companies, you have to understand your supply chains because they see these are the routes by which these man arrows are going from these mines out along the way, these act as a kept taking money of them and using that to finance the conflict. now i should just say at this point, but it doesn't mean very fast stopped, the conflict would stop. this is a really important point. these groups collect revenues off what kinds of things they collect revenue off the trade in timber of kind of the sofa job co. and the

reason we focused on minerals is because that's the one that has an international supply chain. that's the one that ends up with global bias, but that was a recent us government accountability officer pulled the kind of lamented the us legislation to stop find the companies buying minerals that are finance conflict has not stopped the conflict and i was amazed because even the they had misunderstood it, but it just takes away that source of revenue to ok. well, i'm going to bring in robert in a 2nd to explain why your plate. you know what your claim is alleging that is linked directly to apple and they're all i phones. but before i bring you in bro, but let me just tell you what apple is saying, because they have issued a statement, they say, as conflict in the region escalated earlier this year, we notified our supplies. but this notice, and refiners must suspend sourcing 10 tons of them, tungsten and gold,

from the sea. under wind up, we took this action because we were concerned, it was no longer possible for independent auditors or industry certification mechanisms to full. the due diligence required to meet our high standards robot. that's the statement from apple. explain to me what do you make of that statement? because my understanding is that statement came out of stuff you, you submitted you'll, you'll, you'll, you'll, you'll suit both to the. busy it is in front, sam belgium to yes. and to be very frank with you. uh, that statement comes out after uh, when responding to our notices in april that we were going to go ahead. apple wrote to us and said nothing of the short. they said uh they gave us some inane comments about how they comply with human rights and, and basically just uh, cost our request into the garbage didn't bother to speak to the government. and then all of a sudden it appears to be that they, they've found,

but like it changes the entire dynamics of mineral extraction in this region. because they are certifying that they can tell where the minerals are coming from. they are basically admitting that the schemes, the fraudulent schemes that have existed under the brand, etc, or others simply don't carry any water. and when you see our colleague talk about what's going on in the congo, and then you read apple statements about how they're sustainable and how they care about the environment. and you hear about these mass rapes and murders going on. whatever apples relationship is. and we now know very clearly what it is, how dare they not get involved, roll up their sleeves years ago and try to come to an understanding with their

trillions of dollars of revenue as to what role they can play in mitigation. okay, well i think it's fair to say i would like to ask him those questions. i'd like to ask anyone from apple those questions? a reminder we did ask apple to take part in this program. they would have had a seat on this panel, but they have not responded to any of a clear is robert us. and he's with the focusing a little bit more on that statement from them. they say earlier this year, we know to slide us supplies. we have no idea of a tool when they were notified. what do you be now trying to seek more information apps? are you kidding? they, they, they wrote to us in june and they never mention this decision. so it is very clear to me that this decision is very current and directly related to the actions my firm and others of the take. and it's shameful. again,

it is an incredible level of our events that we see western companies continuously engage in. when it comes to the congo or africa and it has to stop the supply chain, abuse has to stop. apple needs to understand that given its size, and so no one buys the supply chain defense. nobody except that these companies that operate under them are fully independent. can i just getting that you go? apple, apple, apple annual law suits are against apple in 2 countries. why are you focusing only on apple all you picking on apple because they all buy value of the world's largest company? oh, do you believe that they are the only one that you would like just responsible for this? apple. in their literature, are probably the only tech company that speaks to human rights. the way that they do. and i think when

a company presents itself as close to god as, as believing and sustained ability is placing the environment upper most in their minds, then they should be the 1st to have to address their behavior and be held accountable . and they, they require accountability and what they just admitted today, it is a statement that will rock the rest of the tech industry a robot. i'm. is it apples g, t to know what the supplies are being doing? what has they be bought? if they have been misled my good cause. oh absolutely. let's be really clear. you're a 4 trillion dollar company and you were obtaining resources from a war zone. your door, right? it's your duty. forget your duty is a human being. forget your duty is a global citizen. it is your absolute duty to ensure that what goes into your

products is not produced by trial labor slave labor not involved in, in supporting rape and mass murder. that your job. okay, let me bring it in, gregory. we, we heard a robot that talk about it ski, there was a whole focus on this more than a decade ago to have a system in place. what is your view of this system that was put in place? so yes, there was we have to talk about 8 scapes. so this was a system that was set up by the peach tree, the international attend associate. just been in the service jason with the instructional, with the intensive association to come up with a system that would trace a, using a tagging system identify exactly where minerals come from. so the end uses. so the refineries and then end users beyond them could have assurance that the minerals

they purchased had no finance conflict. now, over the years, the credibility of this system has come on the increasing attack, not least by the un cruise of experts on the congo. and in april, 2020 to credible witness produced a report called the hit ski, the loaner to match the kind of explain how many rows are being smuggled across from congo. and then given tags from rewind and mines and then exported as real landon and baffled conflict free because there is no role in rolanda. so that report was out there and this is where i think i've taught it. so i was calling on the mary's executive this case, but i can say that in the due diligence system, the app pulling up is assigned up to which is designed by the cd. part of due diligence is that you respond appropriately to new information when it comes to light. and these you and reports in particular, this global witness report really laid it out there was despite, should say,

completely denied and it continues to be denied by escape. so that was out there, but we didn't really see a response. we didn't see a change in source to practice from the down stream. and i think apple is not a line in that. now. then what happened is the by i, which is the wells, which is called 10 mine, which is in the know key was captured by the m 20 tree. and that's a rebel movement from the base rebel movement that has, that'd be great group of experts pretty much have on house, showing how strong support from the alignment government is militarily assisted by the army and has had rewind and troops deployed to assist it to. now at that point, in the cold time from real buy, i started going out under the control of them 23 each into our land and was

then we think we how prove it because we haven't seen these uh these, these were for processing companies and some opened up that themselves to us to but mixed up with random stuff. and that, exported off to turn to the refiners in china. okay, is what was that as well as adding the gregory because i'm happy to represent some of the people that on the, on the panel today. the one the also denies those allegations bring it back together and a lot. um, i'd like to know what people, the, how people following the these allegations in this lawsuit against apple. and as he listened to robert, the lawyer, his passion and his sincerity. and uh, 2 people share that the sincerity of the government that is bringing this case because of course the d. c is, you know, living there is one of the most corrupt countries on a so transparency international, the end jesus onions, the 60 seconds out of

a $180.00 countries in terms of its corruption, even if this cool case one and, and he won damages from apple, you confident the deal, so you would do the right thing with them. this is exactly what the way i have people asked to defend bush allows me because this is how is the deal to see might be able to hold up this minute or so, which is crossing alonda because i'm told i might have just a moment. for example, we have a lead b i but somebody discuss it with one of the or the highest. but somebody in charge off splitting the top for example in the middle is here in the middle is living boma. go into wanda. i'm not to necessarily i'm talking on the do not is not necessarily illegal. there is a, there is important here inside of putting tabs for exactly the diesel dental that you're taking the control of the mirrors, for example, the minute of the was due coming up as far as the, but that is because i'm, i,

there is a body. well, here's the charge off a p, i mean, all those of something to me that i was on the international market. okay. so i'm trying to thank you for the coupon. thank you for that car. what kind of vacation allowed robot, if i can bring you in? now at the end you are bringing this action. so some might say that you bring it in to jurisdictions which might be favorable to you in front of belgium. is that the end of the legal process? cuz my understanding is you are the lawyer for the public of comm. yeah. okay. i, you know, dealing with all the parts of the world. could that be more, could that even be a case in the united states? listen, we are, we are closing no doors. the government has decided that this, they will take this on forever. this involved with the very solver entity of the country. the president is very sincere about ensuring that this band of these lawsuits benefit the,

the very victims that he represents. and that's why he's doing this as well. thank you very much for all guess. today we were joined by gregory in temple salter island, like connie and robert, i'm so then remember, you can always catch this program every day on television, on our phone, or i, which is 0 dot com. we also want to hear from you, what do you think? what did you like, what did you not like? go to well facebook page, that's facebook dot com forward slash ha, inside story. i'll post your thoughts on tags. find this at a to inside story. oh, be fun, j space, i'll be back if i said until then from all the team here in the house, they say bye for now. the is there any sign of the leave for the millions of palestinians and gaza for now stuck between an outgoing biden administration and an incoming trumpet to industries? now that americans have decided to put form back in the white house. what kind of

country in the world expect the quizzical look good us politics. the bottom line, the latest news that are 400 pounds and missing people from the time it is here saying that they have not received tennis single with detailed coverage. this is the sunset of them off this sort of braces happy and taking place every single day since the fall of the form that i see from around the world. it is a high time for the international community to come together to try and rebuild this country. i've already view the aspirations of the 2nd people, the or the

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extinction. this vital marine results may soon be lost for getting close to the people most affected by those in power is often dangerous, but it's absolutely vital. the story is to be told we've pushed as far forward as we can to the front line. now, the smell of that is all the power and a lot of the stories that we cover a highly complex. so it's very important that we make them as understandable as we can to as many people as possible no matter how much they know about a given chrisy. so issue as always, is there a correspondence? that's what we strive to do. examining the impact of today's headlines, no 4 in power liberated the syrians, and this is, syrians has to determine how the future looks like setting agenda for tomorrow's discussions. if you all people from across the world can collaborate, why can't our world leaders international filmmakers and will cross journalists bring programs to inform and inspire too many to justin pratt and much is this

should be on the agenda. financials, era, nowhere to hide and go, as i may as well as relentless attacks, go, dozens of people is risk. it was scrambled to save. suffice. the 70 bulk of this is just a relaxing though. how will so coming up serious? do you, administration outlines as priorities promising a fed justice system for all series picking up the pieces of the month. so from bob and we visit communities in 11 or reduced to rubble by israeli of tax.