Lawyers from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have filed criminal complaints against Apple branches in France and Belgium for use of ‘blood minerals’ from sub-Saharan Africa.

The complaints allege that Apple used minerals looted from the DRC and recycled through international supply chains, accusing the tech giant of using deceptive business practices to convince consumers that its supply chains are clean.

The DRC has hired an international legal team to deal with individuals and companies involved in the chain of extraction, supply and marketing of the DRC's looted natural resources and minerals.

The international legal team representing the DRC includes Robert Amsterdam of Amsterdam & Partners LLP in Washington DC, William Bourdon of Bourdon & Associés in Paris, and Christophe Marchand of Jus Cogens in Brussels.

On Thursday, DRC lawyers wrote to Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission, to inform her of the submission of the criminal complaints and to call for the initiation of a dialogue on the EU's role in working towards accountability and an end to armed violence in sub-Saharan Africa's mining supply chains.

The legal team said in a statement that the scale and duration of these activities have caused “unimaginable damage and suffering” to the civilian population in parts of the country.

“These activities have fuelled a cycle of violence and conflict by funding militias and terrorist groups and have contributed to forced child labour and environmental devastation,” the statement continued.

On Thursday, following the allegations in France and Belgium DRC representative Robert Amsterdam stated: “Colour Apple red, and not green. It is a trillion-dollar company that must be assumed to know the consequences of its actions. Enough with denials of accountability and hiding behind the false narrative of supply chain defenses!”

In April 2024, lawyers representing the DRC asked Apple chief executive Tim Cook and Apple subsidiaries in France to answer questions about whether the company's supply chain is contaminated with blood minerals looted from the country. Apple did not provide concrete answers to the questions.

According to DRC representative William Bourdon, the criminal complaints constitute “an unprecedented dual judicial initiative, a first step towards making one of the biggest players in tech accountable for its policy of endless enrichment at the cost of the most serious of crimes staining African supply chains.”

Lawyer Christophe Marchand added: “‘These complaints filed against Apple are a matter of great public interest at a time when European countries, consumers and non-governmental organisations are increasing their control over international supply chains.”

The statement added that organisations such as the United Nations, the US State Department and the NGO Global Witness have shown the dependency that exists in the relations between the perpetrators of this looting and some of the largest manufacturers of consumer electronics, such as mobile phones and computers, and companies in the automotive, aviation and renewable energy sectors.

National Technology News has approached Apple for comment.

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