Invitation to Panel Debate on EU Conflict Minerals regulation,
Brussels, 6-8 PM, 14 March 2016
CIDSE, Justice & Peace Belgium, EurAc, Misereor and Brot für die Welt
have the pleasure of inviting you to a panel debate on:
EU Conflict Minerals regulation: A step towards enhanced morality in global supply chains?
When: Monday 14 March 2016, 18:00 – 20:00
Where: COMECE, Square de Meeûs, 19/1, B-1050 Brussels
Photo credit: Roland Brockmann/ Misereor
Through its “Conflict Minerals regulation”, the European Union has the objective to break the link between conflicts and the exploitation of natural resources. Following the European Parliament vote in May 2015 requiring all companies to check their supply chains, the EU Council came to the Trialogue negotiations with a different proposal: an opt-in system on a voluntary basis, targeting only importers of minerals and metals. During this panel debate we will explore which regulatory framework could effectively contribute to stopping the suffering of populations living near mines while bringing assurance to EU citizens that they aren’t complicit with human rights abuses when buying high tech products. The discussion will be enriched by the presence of a first-hand witness of the violence caused by armed groups, Abbot Léonard SANTEDI, Secretary General of the Congolese Bishops’ Conference (CENCO), which in 2007 created a specific Episcopal Commission for Natural Resources.
With:
- Abbot Léonard SANTEDI, Secretary General of the Congolese Bishops Conference
- MEP Elmar BROK, President of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament
- Jan TYTGAT, Director EU Government Affairs Benelux, Umicore
- Frédéric TRIEST, Deputy Director of EurAc
Moderation: Denise AUCLAIR, Senior Policy Adviser, CIDSE
The discussion will be followed by a cocktail reception.
Registration starts at 17:30
Interpretation will be provided in English & French
Please register by indicating Name/Organization at: reinhold@cidse.org
For further information, please contact: Stefan Reinhold/CIDSE: reinhold(at)cidse.org +32 (0)22 82 40 71