Issue link: https://bluemagazine.uberflip.com/i/25245
.. Most people would be horrified to learn that their diamond jewelry had financed the purchase of landmines or guns in one of Africa's brutal conflicts." Go to a jewelry store and ask jewelers if they know where their diamonds come from. Mention your concern that diamonds are often tied to human rights abuses. Email the Chairman of the Kimberly Process Abby Chikane Alluvial diamond mining diverts rivers that are not redirected to their original courses when the mining is completed, resulting in the pollution and silting of rivers and other water areas and devastation of the local ecosystem. Mining-relat- ed activities also cause air pollution, contaminate surface and ground water and erode and leach soil. In extreme cases, this leads to desertification. The World Bank reports that alluvial mining is typically done by arti- sans on a small scale and is a source of income in poor, remote areas. It is often done illegally, where governments fail to establish or enforce regulations that cover licensing, taxation and child-labor laws. Miners, like other migrant workers, endure living conditions that expose them to a variety of diseases; HIVjAIDS is widespread in mining areas. Excavation mining involves drilling into bedrock adjacent to a dia- mond-bearing "pipe." In a process known as block caving, tunnels, lined with concrete, are excavated under vertical pipes of kimberlite. Sections of the pipe are then blasted and kimberlite fall into the tunnel like so much candy from a pinata. Like coal mining, this highly invasive technique badly scars the earth. kimberleyprocess@foreign.gov.za and tell him you are concerned about the link between the diamond trade and human rights abuses Write to your government representative urging them to bring justice to those responsible for conflict diamond trading that finances rebel wars, and tell them you would like to see controls in place to prove diamond origin through a certification process. . . ~ www.amnestyinternational.org www.globalwitness.org www.partnershipafricacanada.org . . . The diamond industry hurts the local populations of diamond-producing areas In a variety of ways. In the worst cases, such as Sierra Leone, the unregulated dia· mond trade finances rebel groups that cause widespread chaos, death, murder, rape, and are known specifically for amputating local populations. Human rights groups have launched many campaigns against this. Also, such groups smuggle the gems out of the country, literally cheating their own governments of revenue which could be used to help the general populations. Diamonds' small size and high value make them attractive to smug· glers-they are difficult to source and easy to hide. Even in regulated and non-conflict diamond-mining circumstances, such as in Canada, working conditions can lead to health issues_ 1998: The UN imposes 1991: In Sierra Leone, the rebel group Revolutionary United Front (RUF) begins terrorizing civil- ia ns. The RU F, which controlled the country's diamond-produc- ing areas, financed its arms with profits from diamonds sales. 1993: Collapse of the 1992 peace accords between the Angolan government and the rebel group UNITA, leads the UN to impose embargoes on arms imports and diamond exports on UNITA. International organizations believe UNITA funds its army with proceeds from diamond sales, while the government uses oil profits to buy weapons_ further sanctions on UNITA, mak- ing it illegal to buy diamonds from UNITA or to sell weapons to the group. The European Union adopts the sanc- tions. The UN also imposes sanc- tions on Sierra Leone from importing arms, following the 1997 military cup. In December, the British group Global Witness publishes" A Rough Trade-The Role of Companies and Governments in the Angolan Connict," a report that estimates UNITA earned $3.7 billion between 1992 and 1998 from selling diamonds to willing buy- ers within the diamond industry. 2000: De Beers announces that it is prepared to guarantee that that its gems do not come from war-torn countries. In May, government delegates from diamond-producing and diamond-importing countries, and representatives from the diamond industry and humanitarian organizations meet in Kimberley, South Africa, to start the Kimberley Process. In July, the UN acts on reports that diamonds are funding the war in Sierra Leone. (In 1999, 1 kg of rough diamonds fetched about $1.15 million.) By October, the UN requires certificates of origin for gems from Sierra Leone. Diamonds without certificates are pro- hibited. During a meeting later that month, the World Diamond Congress meets with civil society organizations in Antwerp. It proposes creating a system for certifying the origin of rough diamonds. By December the UN pass- es a resolution, requesting certificates of origin from all diamond exporters. 1999: Humanitarian organizations join Global Witness in publicizing the diamonds for arms trading that has been happening in Angola and other war ravaged countries that have diamond deposits. U.s. Rep. Tony P. Hall introduces the a bill requiring gem-quality diamonds imported into the u.s. market to be accompanied by a certificate listing where they were mined. 57 2001: In January, Namibia hosts a conference to look at how to set up a cert ification system. In April, a UN Panel of Experts publishes a report describing the war in the Democratic Republic of Congo as .. mainly about access, control and trade of five key mineral resources: coltan, diamonds, copper, cobalt and gold." According to a Human Rights Watch report, Liberian President Charles Taylor tries to minimize diamond profits by focusing on logging. In March, Liberia prohibits diamond exports and imports of uncertiRed rough dia- monds. The organization reports Taylor consulted people who had organized the arms-for-diamonds trade to duplicate the same system used for timber exports. In May, the UN Security Council bans Liberian diamond exports and imposes an arms embargo on Liberia_ It also bars Pres ident Taylor and more than 130 senior government officials from leaving the country. The U.s. gov- ernment follows suit by prohibiting Liberian rough diamond imports. In December, the u.s. House of Representatives passes the Clean Diamonds Trade Act by 408 to 6. (As of late 2002, the bill, HR 2722, was awaiting Senate approvaL) www.oxfamamerica.org www.worldvision.org www.phrusa.org