Read this article in:
14 July, 2005
A mining accident at the shuttered Shinkolobwe uranium mine in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo killed at least 30 when a roof collapsed. The mine had been closed for decades, but that hasn’t prevented small-scale, illegal mining for colombo tantalite—or coltan, the valuable mineral used in mobile phones and computer chips—from continuing. ICEM Congolese affiliate FENAMICO has condemned the practice and has called for a full-scale investigation of the 9 July tragedy.