Responsible Diamond Trade

Blood Diamonds

So-called 'blood diamonds' have been argued to finance civil wars in countries such as Angola, Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sierra Leone. In November, thirty-five countries agreed new regulations to control the trade in diamonds from conflict zones. Signatories to the Kimberley Process - agreed in the Swiss city of Interlaken - will participate in a system that will aim to certify that:

Conflict diamonds do not enter the legal trading system between the point of mining and first export from a producing country

Diamonds aren't tampered with between their despatch from a producing country and their first arrival in a country where they will be cut, polished or traded

Countries that cut, polish and trade in rough diamonds have adequate controls and procedures to ensure that conflict diamonds cannot enter their trade.

Campaigners said that the process is just a code of conduct, and not enough to stop armed groups profiting from the trade. For example, research by ActionAid showed that many in the diamond trade are unaware of the agreement to self-regulate, and also of a European directive on conflict diamonds that enforces self-regulation. In November, Amboka Wameyo, ActionAid's Africa Policy Officer said: "The diamond industry is totally unprepared to implement [the code of conduct]. The World Diamond Council, the industry's trade body, has not made public, even to its own members, details of its self-regulation scheme. No attempts have been made to educate jewellers, yet they are the ones who have to prove to buyers that they are selling clean diamonds."

Campaigning organisations including ActionAid, Amnesty International, Global Witness and Oxfam issued a statement from the signing which said: "NGOs are deeply concerned that there is still no system for regular, independent monitoring of all national diamond control systems. Without this, the overall process remains open to abuse." 16

16. Global Witness, 5th November 2002 'NGOs Cautiously Welcome the Launch of Kimberley Process' Interlaken.

www.globalwitness.org/press_releases/display2.php?id=163

ActionAid, blood diamonds campaign.

www.actionaid.org/policyandresearch/wic/diamond_conflict.shtml

Martin Plaut, 5th November 2002 '"Blood diamonds" polished off' BBC News Online, Interlaken.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/2406407.stm

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