Four Ways to Help in the Current Crisis
In late October during the climax of the conflict in DRC, all international relief agencies fled and evacuated their staff while HEAL Africa, with its over 180 Congolese staff members, stood firm treating over 200 war casualties and providing a safe haven for patients. We've got four easy ways for you to help.
1. Donate
HEAL Africa is running short on medical supplies and food for patients. We need your help to continue to treat people who cannot afford medical care and victims of the war. While international relief organizations wait until the conflict dies down, HEAL Africa is in the center, helping those who need it most. Donate here...
2. Host a Party or Event for HEAL Africa
Tell your friends, family, and co-workers about HEAL Africa. Here are some ideas:
- Host a movie night and show "Lumo". We can equip you with a discussion guide and HEAL Africa material
-Have a theme party with a goal to raise a certain amount for HEAL Africa
-Put on a benefit concert or art show
-Sell Healing Arts products, which are sewn by women at the hospital and sold throughout fair trade outlets
-Put on a campus event at your school
-Get your local church invovled
-Sponsor a doctor's salary wtih a group of friends
-Have an ebay 'garage sale' with friends and donate the profits to HEAL Africa
These are just a few ideas, let us know about your ideas at info@healafrica.org
3. Write a Letter to Your Senator and Representative
Help HEAL Africa address the root causes of the conflict - the battle over Congo's vast mineral and resource wealth. Though in much of the media the conflict in Congo is a pitted as tribal, the actual source lies in a fight for control of minerals that drive the global economy. Hundreds of multi-national corporations are complicit in the battle. The Extractive Industry Transparency Disclosure Act (H.R. 6066 and S. 3389) requires mining and resource companies to disclose payments they make to foreign governments. This act will cut down on corruption both at the local government level and the corporate level and make it difficult for armed groups to fund their activities through mineral trade. Click here for the letter.
4. Write to Companies who Depend on Coltan
The Democratic Republic of Congo holds 80% of the world's reserves of coltan, a mineral found in cell phones, laptops, and various other types of electronic equipment. Many armed groups use the trade of this mineral to fund themselves. Child labor and village displacement by large western corporations has been repeatedly documented. Congolese children end up working in the mines instead of going to school and endanger their lives for meager pay. We must hold our businesses accountable for their actions and verify that they are not contributing to armed groups or corruption through their extraction. Use this letter as a template and send it to the cell phone and computer manufacturers you utilize.