Non Governmental Organisations (NGOs) working to end the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) should question who arms rebels making the country restive.
That is the appeal of Belgian Businessman, Alain Goetz who has in the recent days ramped up questions on how NGOs operate in the DRC.
“Pictures of rebels in DRC show men carrying special assault rifles, wearing high quality combat uniforms. Who supplies these men with such rifles and uniforms? It is suspicious that NGOs wrongly accuse gold players for fueling the conflict in DRC and not arms dealers,” Alain tweeted on Monday.
His tweet was backed by people online who questioned the rationale NGOs use to come up with their findings about who is responsible for fueling the conflict.
In March, the United States imposed sanctions on Goetz and a network of companies tied to him that it accused of being allegedly involved in the illicit movement of gold from Democratic Republic of Congo.
READ ALSO: Belgian Businessman Goetz Says US Sanctions On Him Based On Fake Reports By The Sentry
However, he has raised concerns about why the US singled him out basing it’s findings on a shady NGO, The Sentry which he said lacked the moral authority to make conclusions on the conflict.
“Today, let’s talk about sanctions. What evidence do international institutions have before issuing sanctions? Fabricated reports from NGOs like The Sentry?” he wondered.
The Sentry prides itself as an investigative and policy organization that seeks to disable multinational predatory networks that benefit from violent conflict. It had previously raised concerns around the gold trade activities of Goetz, the refinery, and linked companies, calling for targeted sanctions to be considered.
“Fight Impunity, an NGO facing corruption charges in Europe, is an example of the dirty work of NGOs such as The Sentry,” he said in December.
This came after the EU accused him of trafficking Congolese conflict gold and banned him from entering EU territory. The Antwerp native’s assets have also been frozen and other EU companies and citizens are forbidden from trading with him, sanctions he says have been imposed on baseless allegations.
Goetz said he was asked to set up East Africa’s first gold refinery in 2014, adding that “nothing has made me prouder than to see the impact that African Gold Refinery has had on the gold industry in the Great Lakes region”.
