The United States House of Representatives has proposed a new bill to clamp down on the import of critical minerals used in electric vehicle batteries, specifically those mined through child labour in DR Congo and under oppressive conditions in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo). The legislation primarily aims to address China’s handling of mining operations in the resource-rich African country.
The bill is led by Republican Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey who asserts that China employs forced labour and exploits children to extract cobalt, a key mineral integral to the lithium-ion batteries that power electric vehicles. This development plays a significant role in US President Joe Biden’s climate plan, given that DR Congo stands as the world’s largest cobalt producer.
The Chinese government has established a commanding presence in DR Congo, gaining control over the majority of cobalt mines. This grants China a formidable stake in the global supply chain for electric vehicles and associated products.
Rep. Chris Smith has accused the Chinese Communist Party of leveraging trafficked workers and child labour to exploit DR Congo’s vast cobalt resources, thereby fuelling its global ambitions and domestic economy.
This development is occurring amid escalating tensions between the US and China, with President Biden recently referring to Chinese President Xi Jinping as a “dictator”, thereby drawing strong criticism from Beijing. These frictions have been further exacerbated by an array of contentious issues, including alleged Chinese surveillance activities and disputes over Taiwan’s status and security.
However, the Biden administration is attempting to mitigate these strains with Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen slated for a China visit this week, subsequent to Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s two-day stopover in Beijing last month.
China maintains a significant stake in Sicomines, a copper and cobalt joint venture with Congo’s state mining firm Gecamines. This partnership is currently under review by Congo due to concerns over the lack of adequate benefits from the arrangement.
DR Congo, besides being the top producer of copper in Africa, has also recently found lithium, another key component of electric vehicle batteries. However, the extraction process of these minerals has been marred by allegations of child labour, exploitation, environmental degradation, and safety risks. A 2016 Amnesty International report implicated Chinese firms in child labour in Congo’s cobalt mining operations and highlighted the negligence of multinational tech firms in addressing the human rights issues in their supply chains.
The proposed US legislation intends to outlaw the import of goods containing metals or minerals, especially cobalt and lithium, that are mined, produced, or processed partially or wholly through child labour or forced labour in the DR Congo. The bill further mandates the president to identify and impose sanctions, including visa and transaction prohibitions, on foreign entities aiding and exploiting child labour in Congo.
Image Credit: CNN
