March 26th, survey results

https://www.surveymonkey.com/sr.aspx?sm=MbIA1qFbkOL2SGQldJnkGFMBpVC3qX48GRX1cVCoQr4_3d

Click the link above to view the results of my survey on conflict minerals and whether students at McMaster University would pay more for items produced conflict mineral free.
Unsurprisingly, most say they would, but cite price as their biggest consideration when purchasing electronics. These two factors are at odds with each other.

Consider writing your representative on a regular basis

Mr. Harper,

I ask that you and Canada would take a firmer stance on the issue of
Darfur. Violence continues to be perpetuated while the world watches.
The Enough Project, an advocacy group in the US, has confirmed that
satellites have taken images of villages which have been burned to the
ground. It is unacceptable for Canada to maintain a passive stance on
the issues in that region, in the DRC and in the Ivory Coast.
Please consider renewing Canada's image as an international peace
keeper, and add legitimacy to ideas like Responsibility to Protect.
images of villages in Darfur:
http://satsentinel.org/sites/default/files/SSP2-Final.pdf

Respectfully,

Natasha Hovey

For Canada:
pm@pm.gc.ca

March 8th - the situation becomes more alarming

"Ivory Coast rebels have seized a third town in the country's west, forces loyal to incumbent leader Laurent Gbagbo said, while at least six people have died in violence around the main city Abidjan. U.S. President Barack Obama said he has authorized up to $12.6 million in aid to assist refugees from unrest in the Ivory Coast. An 8,000-strong United Nations force is trying to keep a stand-off between Ivory Coast's rival presidential claimants, Laurent Gbagbo and Alassane Ouattara, from tipping into a civil war". The Human Rights Commission has formally opposed the extreme violence in the Ivory Coast.

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/pro-gbagbo-forces-say-rebels-take-ivory-coast-town/
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/us-sets-126-mln-in-aid-for-ivory-coast-refugees/
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=92130

March 3rd

Seven women have been killed in peaceful protests against Gbagbo, incumbent leader of the Ivory Coast. This brings the total to 365 dead since the elections in November, which were meant to unify the country. Some believe this number is much higher. 70,000 have crossed into Liberia, with approximately 200,000 displaced. Although Gbagbo has retained the loyalty of much of the security forces, Ouattara has the support of the international community and is protected by U.N. troops. Thus both sides are at an impasse, with neither willing to relent.

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/ivorian-forces-kill-six-women-at-pro-ouattara-rally/

February 28th

In the Congo, MSF (Doctors Without Borders) report that there have been mass rapes in South Kivu, with 200 men, women and children having been raped since January. Normally violence is not centralized to one area as it has been in this case. Victims state that those responsible are members of the Forces Démocratiques pour la Libération de Rwanda (FDLR), which is made up of former persons responsible for the Rwandan Genocide. Amid the continuing unrest, states, international organization, and NGOs are preparing for the predicted global food shortage which is bound to effect those persons already in crisis due to violence and poverty. This crisis is currently impinging on Libya. France said that humanitarian aid must be the priority rather than military action to oust Muammar Gaddafi, one day after the United States said it was moving warships and air forces closer to Libya.

Food Shortage in Libya:
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/east-libya-could-face-food-shortages-soon-source/
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/france-urges-aid-not-military-action-for-libya/
The Congo:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=92062
On the global food shortage:
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/oxfam-calls-for-radical-shake-up-of-food-aid/
Britain threatens to leave UN Food Agency due to ineffectiveness:
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/britain-threatens-to-quit-un-food-agency/

Feburary 15th

In the wake of various international incidents in Sudan and Egypt, the ongoing chaos in the Ivory Coast has been forgotten. However the conflict continues. Gbagbo's lawyers are now filing to have election results declaring Ouattara president overturned by a Nigerian court. They are seeking to sue ECOWAS, the Nigerian court of law, to achieve this ends. ECOWAS has been vocal in its condemnation of Gbagbo. Meanwhile two international banks have suspended operations in the Ivory Coast, one of which cites security concerns. Gbagbo is also seeking legal action against these banks, specifically the BNP Paribas, which a spokesperson for Gbagbo stated: "has illustrated in the recent past a willingness to stifle the Ivorian economy". In my opinion this is simply a tactic to shift blame for the current economic conditions away from the conflict on Gbagbo's part. The two leaders have yet to meet face to face since the November 28th elections.

http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/ivory-coasts-gbagbo-threatens-legal-action-on-banks/
http://www.trust.org/alertnet/news/ivory-coasts-gbagbo-seeks-to-sue-ecowas-over-polls/
Http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=91924

A report on the roles of the US and France:
http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?ReportID=91921

Why Certification of Conflict Minerals is Important...

"The mass rape of over 300 women in Walikale this past summer was a shocking reminder of the humanitarian implications of the unregulated minerals trade in Congo and the failure of the state to protect its citizens," Enough Co-Founder John Prendergast

http://www.enoughproject.org/publications/view-north-kivu?link=1
http://enoughproject.org/files/view_from_kivu.pdf