Extra battery life, a new and improved camera, and the cutest pink you have ever seen are some of the flashy features you might have heard for the new iPhone 16. However, for the slave workers in Congo it just means more exploitation and less attention on one of the world’s worst humanitarian and food insecurity crisis.
With rechargeable batteries that are used for iPhones and electric vehicles, the one main mineral needed to have production is Cobalt—where the Democratic Republic of Congo, DRC, is the biggest production site according to the Investigative News Network.
Because of this, Congolese people are working in inhumane conditions with shovels and pieces of rebar to mine the earth of its cobalt and deliver it up the supply chain. Leaving the country and its people to suffer the effects of the demands.
“The mining industry has ravaged the landscape of the DRC. Millions of trees have been cut down, the air around mines is hazy with dust and grit, and the water has been contaminated with toxic effluents from the mining processing,” said Kara, a fellow at Harvard’s T.H. Chan School of Public Health, who has been researching the modern-day slavery, human trafficking and child labor for two decades to NPR.
For the slave-workers who are mining the cobalt, to the mothers, babies and children who are breathing in the toxic cobalt powder daily, the Congolese people are suffering from the pressure and force of the production.
According to Save the Children, the world isn’t taking notice of the 25.4 million people who are food insecure, 7.3 million people who are displaced as of 2024, and the current rapid spread of the deadly Mpox,monkeypox, virus across Congo.
“How much do you care about Africa? How much have you been paying attention,” said TikTok creator Shaky, @atute_insp, in a video. “I am curious to see what is about to happen… because we have seen that boycotts work, so I wanted to know is your luxury… is your comfort… more important than the lives of black children?”
The comment section is filled with comments supporting Shaky, with messages thanking them for speaking up, and have said that they won’t be buying new technology and when they do that it will be refurbished.
What’s going on in Congo is no surprise to the world, or Apple, as not only has the DRC threatened apple with legal action for the exploitation of the mining of cobalt. International lawyers representing Congo have sent letters to Apple’s CEO Tim Cook, to share the concerns of the human right violations that are going on.
“Apple… has denied using minerals from mines and regions where human rights violations take place, saying it conducts business ethically and ‘responsibly’ sourced minerals in Congo and neighboring countries,” wrote Gerald Imray for AP news.
While you may want to stay up to date with the latest technology, the people, mothers, and children of Congo are paying the ultimate price. Some alternatives that better support the Congolese people is buying used or refurbished devices, or truly evaluating if you need the latest iPhone or if you are feeding into the latest trend or overconsumption.
