On “60 Minutes” a couple of Sundays ago, they had a story about gold mining in eastern–almost lawless–Congo. Because of my obsession with nearby Uganda, the story was very much of interest. And the story is very topical right now with the price of gold hovering around $1,100/ounze. But I want to tell this tale backward.
In June of 2008, on a flight to Uganda, we landed in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for an overnight layover. Since we had an evening to kill, we signed up for a tour of the metropolitan area. The tour was an introduction to the massive building projects then underway and/or completed in Dubai. Our guide alleged that one-quarter of all construction cranes were in Dubai (probably a major exaggeration, but the construction was still remarkable.) Of course, there is the in-door snow-ski run. And the sail-shaped Burj al-Arab Hotel, the most expensive in the world, and reputed to be the only 7-star hotel. And let us not forget the the unfinished 160-story Burj Dubai, the planet’s tallest building. At the end of the tour, our bus stopped so we could peruse the gold vendors of Dubai. According to “60 Minutes,” these shops are the end point for central Africa’s gold.
“60 Minutes” showed conditions in one of the gold mines in the Congo. Laborers were digging buckets full of mire to obtain minute qualities of gold using manual strip-mining techniques that left the physical landscape resembling a typewriter keyboard. Conditions at the mines are not good. An additional problem, the gold is separated using a process involving mercury. But the worst part is that money made from the mining operations is used to buy arms in support of the constant petty wars that go on in central Africa. These wars have displaced millions, killed hundred of thousands and many more raped, and threatened the mountain gorilla reserves, killing some.
The gold is then transported from eastern war-torn Congo to Kampala, Uganda, where it is sold to Asian gold merchants. From there, I assume it is transported by airplane to Dubai. With diamonds there have been efforts to keep the gems from funding wars and hooligans. But apparently there is no such effort with gold. So some of the gold, heavily prized around the world and in some financial circles, is being used to further create misery in central Africa.
Ironically, with the current meltdown in the financial world, the construction in Dubai has ground to a halt. In fact, some of the businesses in the emirate are bordering on bankrupcy. But the price of gold is still flying high, in part because of current world financial problems.
