Apple and Google named in US lawsuit over Congolese child cobalt mining deaths | Global development

Apple and Google named in US lawsuit over Congolese child cobalt mining deaths | Global development | The Guardian
►https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/dec/16/apple-and-google-named-in-us-lawsuit-over-congolese-child-cobalt-mining
►https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7de810f715289e26e7ddddeda437c1dde2be6f48/0_0_5760_3456/master/5760.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

A landmark legal case has been launched against the world’s largest tech companies by Congolese families who say their children were killed or maimed while mining for cobalt used to power smartphones, laptops and electric cars, the Guardian can reveal.

Apple, Google, Dell, Microsoft and Tesla have been named as defendants in a lawsuit filed in Washington DC by human rights firm International Rights Advocates on behalf of 14 parents and children from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The lawsuit accuses the companies of aiding and abetting in the death and serious injury of children who they claim were working in cobalt mines in their supply chain.

#esclavage_moderne #enfance #enfants #travail #gafa

Apple and Google named in US lawsuit over Congolese child cobalt mining deaths | Global development | The Guardian
►https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2019/dec/16/apple-and-google-named-in-us-lawsuit-over-congolese-child-cobalt-mining
►https://i.guim.co.uk/img/media/7de810f715289e26e7ddddeda437c1dde2be6f48/0_0_5760_3456/master/5760.jpg?width=1200&height=630&quality=85&auto=format&fit=crop&overlay-ali

A landmark legal case has been launched against the world’s largest tech companies by Congolese families who say their children were killed or maimed while mining for cobalt used to power smartphones, laptops and electric cars, the Guardian can reveal.

Apple, Google, Dell, Microsoft and Tesla have been named as defendants in a lawsuit filed in Washington DC by human rights firm International Rights Advocates on behalf of 14 parents and children from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The lawsuit accuses the companies of aiding and abetting in the death and serious injury of children who they claim were working in cobalt mines in their supply chain.

Cobalt is essential to power the rechargeable lithium batteries used in millions of products sold by Apple, Google, Dell, Microsoft and Tesla every year. The insatiable demand for cobalt, driven by desire for cheap handheld technology, has tripled in the past five years and is expected to double again by the end of 2020. More than 60% of cobalt originates in DRC, one of the poorest and most unstable countries in the world.

The extraction of cobalt from DRC has been linked to human rights abuses, corruption, environmental destruction and child labour.

The lawsuit argues that Apple, Google, Dell, Microsoft and Tesla all aided and abetted the mining companies that profited from the labour of children who were forced to work in dangerous conditions – conditions that ultimately led to death and serious injury.

#Cobalt #Droits_humains #Travail_enfants #GAFA #Batteries