In July 2010 the US Senate passed landmark legislation to help end Congo’s resource-wars. Provisions in the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (also known as the Financial Reform Act) will require companies whose products contain cassiterite (tin ore), coltan (tantalum ore), wolframite (tungsten ore) and gold to disclose to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) whether they are sourcing these minerals from the DRC or adjoining countries.

Companies that are sourcing these minerals from DRC and its neighbours will have to detail the measures they have taken to avoid sourcing these minerals from Congolese armed groups, which are guilty of massacres and other atrocities.  The Act also requires that all information disclosed to the SEC be independently audited.

Global Witness warmly welcomed the move as a victory for campaigners and is working with US regulators to ensure effective implementation. We are also calling on the UK and other major economies to follow the US example so that these crucial reforms can become global standards.