A recent article piece posted on the Computerworld magazine called for readers to join their forces to combat war in Congo by stopping to buy consumer electronics from companies that use the so called “conflict minerals” used for the manufacture of smartphones, laptops and gaming devices.

In the New York Times, columnist Nicholas Kristof has this to say about the war, "I've never reported on a war more barbaric than Congo's, and it still haunts me." The brutality and barbarity of the war is unspeakable, including, Kristof says, "children who have been forced to eat their parents' flesh." Mutilation and rape are common.

The war in Congo is financed through the sales of mineral ore that contains tantalum, tungsten, tin, and gold. These minerals are used to produce the consumer electronics you commonly use. There are other places in the world those minerals can be found than in Congo. When they're taken and used from Congo, they're referred to as "conflict minerals," because they are fueling the war.

Many observers including Computerworld believe that stopping to buy those conflict minerals may help stop the war as it would cut off a major source of money that pays for the militias.

While some companies are developing a process to determine the origins of tantalum in supply chains, so that they can ensure they don't buy conflict minerals, consumers are urged to participate in Head to Raise Hope for Congo program to pressure companies to stop buying conflict minerals. Besides, customers are also advised to send email to the 21 biggest electronics companies, telling them that consumers will buy their products if they commit to no longer purchasing the blood minerals, and to "take the conflict" out of their electronics.

Noble they may be these intentions are unlikely to help Congo stop the war. The money is just a source of financing but not the source of the war. It is the people who have the power are responsible for these crimes.