- Denunciation, responsibility, and collective reflection: From March 3 to 5, the 10th edition of the Mobile Social Congress filled spaces to critically analyse the role of the electronic sector and big tech companies in global conflicts. Organized as a critical alternative to the Mobile World Congress, the event provided a platform for debate and awareness.
- More than 20 experts in technology and AI, along with representatives from global justice organizations, took part in this edition under the theme “Hacking the system and building resistance.” They contributed to debunking myths about artificial intelligence, highlighted the dangers of power abuses in the tech sector and human rights violations worldwide, and raised awareness about responsible technology use.
March 6, Barcelona – The Mobile Social Congress concludes its 10th edition with the participation of over 350 people. From March 3 to 5, attendees engaged in various activities designed as an alternative to the Mobile World Congress (MWC), offering a space for critically examining the role of the electronics industry and big tech in global conflicts.
Through a protest at the gates of the MWC denouncing its complicity with Israel, a workshop promoting free software organized with SomNúvol, a live podcast by La Turra on AI, and a day of talks addressing current issues related to the abusive use of technology, the event attracted a diverse, intergenerational, and engaged audience. It also strengthened and forged new alliances between leading global justice organizations, both locally and internationally.
The initiative was presented at a press conference at the Sala Raval of the CCCB on March 5 at 4:00 PM, just before the series of talks. The panel featured David Llistar, Director of the Global Justice Department of the Barcelona City Council; Claudia Bosch, coordinator of the Electrònica Justa campaign at SETEM Catalunya; Bernat Alcolea, coordinator of Som Connexió; and Víctor Fancelli, member of the organizing group of SobTec – Congress on Technological Sovereignty.
Llistar described the Mobile Social Congress as a valuable alternative to the Mobile World Congress, stating that “internationalization, which has its ‘dark sides,’ makes it necessary for a city hosting the world’s most important tech congress to also have an initiative like the Mobile Social Congress, led by SETEM, to showcase and explain that alternatives exist. We hope it will continue for many years to come.”
Claudia Bosch, coordinator of the Electrònica Justa campaign at SETEM Catalunya, reminded that “for 10 years, we have been denouncing the high social and environmental cost of digitalization through the Electrònica Justa campaign, yet the dominant narrative remains techno-optimistic—one that ignores the impacts and invisibilizes the people working in these supply chains, sacrificing their rights and well-being. We believe that citizens in the Global North have the right to be informed and to understand the power dynamics behind technological products. Most importantly, they have the right to know that alternatives exist.”
Bernat Alcolea, coordinator of Som Connexió, an entity that supports the MSC, emphasized that “supporting the Mobile Social Congress, where the impacts on people and the planet are made visible, is crucial for us. We must transform the world of technology, and we must do so through conscious consumption—by re-evaluating how we use technology and striving to minimize its impact.”
Víctor Fancelli, a member of the SobTec – Congress for Technological Sovereignty organizing group, stressed that “it is essential to convey that we have the final say in how we consume technology, and this applies not only to hardware but also to software. We have collaborated with SETEM to ensure that the SobTec program complements the MSC, as SobTec focuses more on local perspectives, particularly on free software alternatives for the people of Catalonia. Our aim is not just to critique but also to propose solutions.”
The talks at the 10th Mobile Social Congress
The discussion sessions at MSC 2025, moderated by 5W magazine director Agus Morales, began with the panel “Barriers and Union Struggles: Testimonies and Realities in the Electronics Sector.” In this session, Jeroen Merk from SOMO presented Good Electronics’ new report on the barriers to unionization in the electronics industry, featuring various case studies. As Merk explained, “There is a massive gap in union representation within the electronics sector. Millions of workers in the supply chain are denied the right to organize and engage in collective bargaining—and if they do, they risk their lives.”
Merk examined cases from Silicon Valley, China, and Malaysia, detailing the industry’s restrictive policies toward workers’ collectives, which legitimize rights violations through unethical practices. He emphasized the significance of the right to organize, describing it as a cornerstone of global labor rights that safeguards workers’ ability to form unions and engage in collective bargaining. This right also includes the right to strike, which is fundamental to ensuring workers have real influence in negotiations. Without the ability to withhold their labor, Merk argued, workers lack the necessary power to secure fair conditions.
Prihanani Boenadi, from the Federation of Metal Workers’ Unions of Indonesia (FSPMI), shared insights into union struggles in Indonesia. “Some of the main challenges include the difficulty of organizing unions in smaller factories and the fact that minimum wages vary by region, making it attractive for companies to relocate and cut costs at the expense of workers’ conditions,” she explained. “Regarding contracts, we are constantly fighting to ensure they are upheld. In some cases, we can even be fined for changing jobs if we find a better one before our contract ends.”
Mary Ann Castillo, president of the Nexperia union in the Philippines, a semiconductor and other electronics components manufacturing company, was ultimately unable to connect to the panel to attend a meeting between the union and the company to negotiate a fair salary and defend their right to organize. The negotiations began in January 2024, and since then, many workers have been fired, and the demands have not been met. After the negotiations, the union declared a strike and sent a live video from the strike to the Mobile Social Congress: “The hardships suffered by the workers at Nexperia are also experienced by others across the Philippines and the world. Due to capitalism, which seeks to accumulate ever greater profits, with governments as accomplices, neoliberal policies are widely being implemented, including, among other things, temporary and unstable hiring, the imposition of extremely low wages, the application of wage regionalization, mass layoffs due to cost optimization or automation.”
The event continued with an interview with Chiara Scalabrino from TCO Certified, discussing the question: ‘Is it possible to have an ethical certification in the electronics sector?’ Scalabrino explained that 60% of emissions are released before the “computer or any other device reaches our desk” and highlighted the importance of certification for responsible processes, as it addresses the entire production chain. “To this day, we can say that the demand has only come from the public administration” and she stressed that “if there is not a strong demand from consumers, it is difficult for producers to request certification.”
She also highlighted the challenges of achieving ethical certification in the electronics sector: “For example, when it comes to conflict minerals, due diligence has been ongoing for a long time, though it remains difficult. One of the biggest challenges is working with all stakeholders, including local communities.”
Along these lines, the next panel, “Mining, Electronics, and Inequality: Stories of Global Impact,” followed. The first speaker was Emmanuel Umpula from Afrewatch, who delved into the situation facing communities in North Kivu, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)—home to a significant portion of the world’s coltan and cobalt reserves—following a memorandum of understanding with the European Union. Umpula described the situation as critical: “We are talking about millions of deaths, and the world is not reacting. The main reason is the existence of highly valuable minerals in the region, the exploitation of which is essential for sustaining the modern technological lifestyle we have today.”
“We are trying to engage with Brussels to establish a dialogue, but we are not receiving any responses. We are asking them to share their work plan, to know which projects are being proposed, and to see if any of them can create local value,” Umpula explained.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) filed a lawsuit against tech giant Apple, but the court dismissed the case. “There are numerous European reports confirming that many companies benefit from the ongoing conflict in eastern Congo. Apple is not the only one. Our organization is calling on companies to help bring peace. Mining must take place in a way that benefits local communities, and we must clearly define the conditions under which companies operate in the country.”
Sabelo Mnguni from MACUA highlighted the case of the Stilfontein massacre in South Africa: “This was a state operation that resulted in the deaths of thousands of people, aimed at putting an end to illegal mining. This is yet another example of prioritizing economic profits over human lives, with no accountability. It is a serious and dangerous situation, especially considering that the mining industry is one of the main economic drivers of the African continent.”
Rare earth minerals are another major source of conflict. These elements, named for their specific and uncommon mineral composition, are essential in the production of wind turbines, electric vehicles, drones, missiles, aircraft, screens, lasers, smartphones, and hard drives. Clàudia Custodio from the Observatory of Debt in Globalization (ODG) explained that a study has identified 28 conflicts related to the environmental and social impacts of rare earth mining, with Madagascar being one of the affected regions.
She also pointed out that “some studies predict that the demand for technologies such as electric vehicles will triple, and countries in the EU and the US are now seeking new sources for the raw materials needed to manufacture them.”
The final panel, “Technology, Occupation, and Genocide,” began with the presentation of an international campaign originating in the United States to end Project Nimbus—a contract between Google, Amazon, and Israel—led by the group No Tech for Apartheid. This movement was initiated by tech industry workers themselves. Laura, who prefers to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation, is the current president of the campaign. She recalled that the tech industry originally relocated from Boston to California due to fewer regulations, and that this strategy of offshoring operations to places with the weakest regulations still dominates the industry today—along with a culture of union suppression within Big Tech. However, she emphasized that “worker pressure is crucial in demanding that these large corporations sever ties with states engaged in apartheid or genocide, as is the case with Israel.”
Continuing the criticism of complicity with Israel, Tina Mason, a member of La Fira en la Mira, presented a campaign targeting Fira de Barcelona, demanding the expulsion of Israeli companies from MWC, as well as from other events hosted by the trade fair institution. Mason stated that “Fira de Barcelona has a long history of complicity in the genocide of the Palestinian people, hosting multiple technology sector events linked to and collaborating with the Israeli government and tech industry.” Regarding the MWC, Mason revealed: “We have identified 46 companies with a presence at the event that are linked to the Israeli military sector. Some are well-known, such as Amazon and Google.” She also emphasized that Fira de Barcelona is a consortium formed by the Generalitat de Catalunya, the Barcelona City Council, and the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, highlighting how these public administrations are actively promoting the presence of these companies—and others connected to the military industry—in the city of Barcelona. The campaign has organized various actions, including protests, petitions, and calls for boycotts. However, Mason noted that the response from public institutions has been one of “rejection, deflection of responsibility, and outright indifference.”
To conclude, Nora Miralles from the Mediterranean Observatory of Human Rights and Business (ODHE) presented the report “Mass Surveillance in the Maghreb and Mashreq.” In her analysis, Miralles explained that “the control of technology has become a central element in global conflicts, and the technology and surveillance sectors operate in an unregulated context that fails to protect human rights. We first saw this clearly during the rise of movements like the Arab Spring, which led to the repression of freedoms through technological restrictions. This repressive technological architecture continues to be used 15 years later.”
SETEM Catalunya
The Mobile Social Congress is an initiative led by SETEM Catalunya, as part of the Electrònica Justa campaign, serving as a platform for public discussion, reflection, and awareness about the consumption and production of electronic devices and information and communication technologies (ICT).
Founded in Barcelona in 1968, SETEM Catalunya is headquartered in Barcelona, with a territorial delegation in Tarragona and a local group in Sitges. The organization focuses on fighting injustices caused by global capitalism through awareness campaigns, public denunciation, and citizen mobilization in Catalonia, alongside international solidarity efforts. It promotes an economic model that prioritizes human rights and people’s needs. SETEM Catalunya is also part of the SETEM Federation, which includes other SETEM branches across Spain.
SETEM is actively working with other Catalan organizations to establish the Catalan Center for Business and Human Rights, a public institution aimed at preventing human rights violations committed by companies operating in Catalonia. The center would also have the capacity to receive complaints from victims, investigate cases, and make information public.
On Thursday, March 6, for the third time, the proposal for a law to create this center will be submitted to the Catalan Parliament, with a press conference scheduled at 12:00 PM.
The Mobile Social Congress 2025 is made possible through funding from the Global Justice Department of the Barcelona City Council, the Catalan Agency for Development Cooperation, the cooperative Som Connexió (a social and solidarity economy telecommunications provider), and the association Pangea – Ethical and Solidary Internet.
