Katanga is nothing but a huge mining pit
Miners denounce the systematic looting of their province’s vast resources.
After several weeks of negotiations, a meeting was arranged. Several members of Katangan civil society, labor unions, and mining cooperatives agreed to testify in a secret location. They denounce the plundering that their provinces are subjected to, primarily Haut-Katanga (Lubumbashi) and Lualaba (Kolwezi), which were split from the larger Grand Katanga region in 2015.
Speaking out is dangerous in this country. “There’s a real crackdown led by the military and security agents, mostly from Kasai, against those who break the silence,” explains one of our sources, adding: “It must be said that illegal mining brings colossal sums to the presidential family and unscrupulous entrepreneurs.”
“Enough is enough,” says a leader of a mining cooperative in Lualaba, whose artisanal mining zone (ZEA) was seized by Christian Tshisekedi, described as the most present member of the presidential family in this province.
“Since 2019, things have significantly worsened. Katanga has become the cash cow for the presidential family, which siphons off the wealth of our provinces, especially Lualaba, but invests nothing,” explains one of our interlocutors.
According to the new mining code, more money should have gone into provincial coffers. “But almost nothing has been done, while the presidential clan, with its many frontmen and partners, mainly Chinese but also Lebanese or Indian, pockets tens of millions of dollars each month by pillaging tailings and waste rock that mostly belong to Gécamines (the successor to the Union Minière du Haut Katanga, a company that is 100% owned by the Congolese state) and private companies like ERG, a partner of Gécamines,” he continues.
Unwelcome largesse
“Under Governor Katumbi, copper production was lower, international market prices were less favorable, and there was less cross-border trade, yet investments were numerous,” asserts a Gécamines unionist. “Today, with the advantages brought by the 2018 mining code and investments moving into production phases, governors have far more means, but nothing is being done. If we ask where the money goes, the answer is simple: everyone comes to take their share in Lubumbashi and Kolwezi. National ministers regularly visit our provinces just to collect their envelope.” And he points particularly at the national Defense Minister or Interior Minister who “rushed here upon their appointments. They don’t come for sightseeing or to encourage us; they come to take their cut.”
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The new mining code stipulated that revenues exceeding a billion dollars since 2018 in Lualaba should be pre-allocated to community infrastructure projects. “But the new government quickly issued a decree to circumvent this obligation. Now, these revenues go into a common account of the governorate, creating ambiguity about where the funds are going, which rarely serve Katangan interests,” continues one of our experts, highlighting “the Excellence Fund. A structure financed by funds from Haut-Katanga and Lualaba and managed by the wife of the President. The goal of this fund is certainly commendable, but it is a private initiative drawing from our provincial treasuries. There’s also the famous National Fund for Reparations to Victims of Sexual Violence (Fonarev), whose sole purpose is to divert 11% of mining royalties. It too is managed by the Belgian wife of the Congolese Head of State.”
$320 billion!
While the use of these revenues raises questions, experts emphasize what they call the “illegal seizure of numerous Gécamines tailings and others.”
“Tailings are deposits of extracted minerals classified according to their copper and cobalt content and stored for future use,” explains one of them.
These tailings often accumulated around mines. They usually contained lower-grade ores which, today, thanks to technological advancements, hold real treasures. “Gécamines has an accurate cadastre of these tailings and their copper and cobalt content. The big advantage of these tailings is that no further exploration or excavation work is needed; you just load the ore onto trucks and bring it to a plant for processing. It’s very easy money,” he explains further, armed with a table listing all these tailings and waste rocks along with staggering figures. Tailings pile 401, for example, contains 90 million tons of copper ore. Pile 611 shows 71 million tons. The price per ton of copper, steadily rising for years, is now nearing $9,000. “Do the math, these are unimaginable numbers. With current techniques, experts at Gécamines estimate that these tailings and waste rocks can produce 298 million tons of copper metal and over 1.9 million tons of cobalt. At current rates, the total value of these assets could reach $320 billion currently under threat of looting by the Tshisekedi family.”
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Indeed, according to several organizations of Katangan civil society, numerous tailings are now being exploited illegally by members and associates of the presidential family, often in collaboration with Chinese intermediaries. A list of these illegally seized tailings has been compiled by these Katangan NGOs. “The Katangans are tired of this situation; they are starting to speak out, disseminating evidence of the actions of members of the presidential family, some generals, and certain ministers. These individuals can count on the support of the Republican Guard (GR), an elite unit that reports directly to the President. Today, these GRs are present on many mining sites. They first evicted previous occupants and now ensure security so that the theft of our riches can proceed peacefully,” recounts one expert. “Sometimes, these Chinese, Lebanese, or Indians just need to make a phone call to General Christian Ndaywell (of Belgian nationality) or someone close to the president. They put down a sum, minimum $20 million, and they get the right to exploit a tailing worth at least ten times that amount. It just takes a phone call and a large briefcase of cash. It’s the wild west. An absolute state of lawlessness, to the point that some people don’t hesitate to extract uranium-rich ores, as profitable as they are dangerous. Several organizations have raised the alarm. Uranium is mined at night for Chinese clients; some even mention North Koreans operating from Zambia on the other side of the border with Katanga,” continues one of our interlocutors.
An accurate cadastre of these tailings and their contents was made about twenty years ago. “So, when the time comes, it will be possible to tally what has been stolen by these people,” assures one of our interlocutors, document in hand. “In addition to the tailings, this family has monopolized almost all subcontracting activities, generating annual revenue of $10 billion. Their newly created companies are the only ones recommended by Miguel Katemb, the general director of ARSP, the president’s man who awards them parts of the subcontracting market at the expense of locals.”
Self-determination
By exploiting the tailings, “war chests” of Gécamines (even though some private companies are also affected by this scourge), the perpetrators of this fraud are pushing the state-owned enterprise, which still employs 9,000 people, toward the abyss. “Everything is being done to dismantle Gécamines. Geological studies have shown that there are also copper reserves in the Kasaï soil, but it apparently doesn’t interest Kinshasa. The current power seems intent on bringing Katanga to its knees. So, why remain united if this union costs us so dearly,” continues an expert who quietly mentions a desire for self-determination. “Katanga receives nothing in exchange for this plunder. Lualaba has no roads, no hospitals, no infrastructure, and yet we are the province that still sustains the State while enriching the presidential clan.” Some structures of Katanga civil society no longer hide that they are “closely monitoring” the progress of antigovernment troops further north. “Corneille Nangaa, the boss of AFC/M23 talks about setting up a federal state,” explains a member of the Lualaba civil society, particularly upset about the illegal over-exploitation of his province’s riches. “These mines are exhaustible. We cannot accept this plunder that jeopardizes the future of our children for the benefit of a single family. In the not-so-distant future, if we don’t stop this nightmare, Lualaba will be nothing more than a huge polluted hole. Meanwhile, those who pillage us today will live in palaces and travel in private jets. These people, who still hold Belgian nationality, lived in precarious conditions or on social assistance back home. In less than seven years, they’ve built colossal fortunes by plundering our resources.”
Complaint soon to be filed in Belgium
Facing this plunder, Gécamines unionists and members of civil society have contacted Me Bernard Maingain, a lawyer at the Brussels Bar. “I am indeed involved in filing a complaint regarding predations in the mining sector in DRC,” he explains; “My clients complain about predations carried out by various economic operators, primarily Chinese, but also members of the immediate family of President Félix Tshisekedi.”
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As part of this complaint, the Brussels law firm is collaborating with a coalition of Congolese lawyers in formation. “We plan to file complaints both in DRC and in Belgium, given that the concerned family members also hold Belgian nationality.”
“Based on the information I have, the amounts involved are colossal. These are offenses of corruption, embezzlement, and money laundering. We obviously stress the presumption of innocence,” Maingain continues, emphasizing the “social consequences of these criminal practices, tragic for the workers in the Katanga mining sector. We’re talking about wage cuts, dismissals of accident victims, and non-compliance with collective agreements in this industry. In fact, the only ones who gain nothing from what can be presented as a plundering are the workers and their families. I’m also surprised that this disastrous human situation escapes the radar of certain personalities who claim to be progressive in Belgium.”
EDITOR: This article a full translation from what was originally in French, published by La Libre, Belgium.
