Many of the demonstrators were members of local chapters of Amnesty International, including local colleges and a couple of high schools.
Speakers at the rally noted that the world's appetite for cell phones and other high-tech appliances has helped fuel the violence. These devices use an alloy made from coltan, a mineral widely exploited in eastern Congo by many of the armed groups contending for power. "We need to raise awareness of this problem," said Koettel, so that people understand that they are connected to the issue.
Father Jean Claude Atusameso, the executive director of the Jatukik Providence Foundation, which helps orphans in Congo, said that many people fail to understand the nature of the conflict in his homeland. "It's not a civil war, it's a war of aggression over economic wealth," he said. He blamed Rwandan leader Paul Kagame for supporting rebel leader Laurent Nkunda.
One specific legislative goal of the demonstration was to urge support for the International Violence against Women Act, which would increase US diplomatic attention on this issue and develop a more integrated and robust response.
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