Wars in Africa need to be paid for and many of the continent's most bitter conflicts take place in areas richest in natural resources. Global Witness says that in the same way that blood diamonds have adversely affected the lives of people in Sierra Leone and Liberia, and oil has fuelled violence in the Niger Delta, so cocoa has done the same in Ivory Coast. This is the world's biggest producer of cocoa -- the main product that goes into making chocolate.
Since 2002, the cocoa region has been split between government and rebel-held regions. According to Global Witness, millions of dollars worth of cocoa revenue have funded both sides in the conflict, with the tacit acceptance of the cocoa companies based in America and Europe.
Global Witness takes the view that the chocolate industry has a responsibility to ensure that the profits it makes from the products it sells are conflict-free. The companies can do this through careful monitoring and auditing. The Ivory Coast's finances, it says, should be more transparent and the UN Security Council should threaten sanctions against those who divert cocoa revenue into West African conflicts.
New Words (Từ mới)
blood diamonds
kim cương dính máu, kim cương được buôn bán hay trao đổi lấy vũ khí, trang thiết bị chiến tranh
fuelled
khơi lên, thổi bùng lên, khiến gây ra một cái gì đó mà trong trường hợp này là tình trạng bạo động
rebel-held regions
những vùng do phe nổi dậy kiểm soát
revenue
doanh thu
tacit acceptance
ngầm chấp nhận
conflict-free
phi xung đột, không liên quan dính dáng tới các cuộc xung đột, không dùng để chi tiêu cho các cuộc xung đột, các cuộc chiến
monitoring
quan sát, giám sát
auditing
kiểm toán
transparent
minh bạch, rõ ràng, trong sáng
sanctions
các biện pháp cấm vận, trừng phạt
