By Alistair Dutton, Director of the Scottish , Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF)

MONEY for mobile phones and many other everyday electrical equipment we take for granted has paid for natural materials that have funded some of the world’s most brutal conflicts. The Scottish

Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF) has seen first-hand the suffering, slavery and human rights abuses caused by so-called conflict minerals like tin, coltan, tungsten, tantalum and gold, through our work with poor communities in Colombia and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Over the years SCIAF has demanded that politicians stop this deadly practice. The new European Union legislation that came into force this month is an important step to stop money for minerals entering into Europe, paying for and prolonging conflicts and abuses of human rights.

The global trade in minerals used in our mobile phones, TVs and other electronics is worth billions of pounds and many of them are bought in Europe. Yet until now, there has been no law in the EU forcing companies to make sure the materials they use have not funded violence.

On Last Thursday new legislation to tackle the flow of conflict minerals into Europe was introduced. This means that, for the first time, companies importing raw materials will be legally required to check their supply chains and ensure their operations are not linked to human rights abuses or conflict.

While this is a positive move, it needs to go further. The new law will only apply to importers of raw materials. As a result, goods that contain conflict minerals as a component, intermediate products or finished products such as mobile phones and laptops which enter the EU market pre-assembled won’t be covered. As such, many companies will be let off the hook, and more innocent lives destroyed. EU legislators also opted for a disappointingly lengthy phase-in time, with the regulation not coming into force until 2021.

Speaking about the immense damage the trade in conflict minerals has had on communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Teresa Mapenzi, a SCIAF partner, explained to us: “The rebels come to the village at night and people are taken hostage. Men and children are forced to mine coltan and gold, and women are used as sexual slaves and cooks. There is no control from the authorities – some even profit from the trade.”

Over the years, many mining areas worldwide have become synonymous with human rights abuses, instability and conflict. Child miners sometimes as young as seven have to endure the physically demanding nature of mining. These children often work for up to 12 hours a day, digging, sifting through stones and carrying heavy loads to earn between 80p and £1.60 a day. Those not attending school often find themselves deep in tunnels for as long as 24 hours at a time.

The new law is an important first step and SCIAF hopes that, despite its limitations, it can contribute to real improvements on the ground for affected communities. SCIAF will continue to urge companies to ensure their business and operations do not contribute to the abuse of human rights.

The European Union and the UK must do more to ensure that all companies dealing in the mineral industry, including those currently exempt under the new legislation, honour their human rights responsibilities. Only by doing so, can we be sure that the goods we buy and the businesses we support are not complicit in the daily human suffering and unnecessary hardship brought about by conflict minerals.