Conflict Diamonds

“Conflict diamonds, also known as "blood" diamonds, are rough diamonds used by rebel movements or their allies to finance armed conflict aimed at undermining legitimate governments.” This definition was from the website
http://www.kimberleyprocess.com:8080/site/?name=faq .

Conflict diamonds are estimated to make up about 4% of the world’s diamond production. Three countries where many conflict diamonds are sourced from are Sierra Leone, the Congo and Angola, all in diamond-rich West and Central Africa.

An excellent narrative of what atrocities can be inflicted by the blood-thirsty rebel forces can be found at this site:
http://www.diamondhunt.co.uk/conflictdiamonds.html

It is suspected that Osama bin Laden’s supporters may have used conflict diamonds to raise money to finance their terrorist activities.

The best way to avoid purchasing a conflict diamond is by getting proof from your shortlisted retailers that their diamonds are conflictfree and were traded under the auspices of the Kimberley Process.

“The Kimberley Process is an international certification scheme that regulates the trade in rough diamonds. Its aim is to prevent the trade in conflict diamonds, while helping to protect the legitimate trade in rough diamonds.” This explanation was taken from the website
http://www.kimberleyprocess.com:8080/site/?name=faq .

Online retailers who trade in “clean” Kimberley Process sourced diamonds would hopefully display the logo in Figure 14. Further information about this can be found at the Amnesty International site
http://www.amnestyusa.org/diamonds/index.do

The public awareness of blood diamonds is set to increase markedly with news that Leonardo di Caprio will star in a movie in 2006 called “The Blood Diamond”, set in Sierra Leone in 999.