pLiberias Presidential Task Force on Diamonds has decided to intensify its work and to examine how to implement recommendations from last Octobers Kimberley Process review mission report and the report of the Panel of Experts on Liberia, which was presented in December 2009. Both reports note that implementation of the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme has [...]
Zimbabwe Supreme Court Judgement Orders Zimbabwe Mining Development Corporation to Cease Mining Activities at Marange Diamond Claims
African Consolidated Resources Plc, the AIM listed resource development company focussed in Zimbabwe, has provided an update on ACR’s right to mine the eastern Marange diamond fields (‘the Marange Claims Area’). African Consolidated was successful in a High Court Judgement handed down on 25 September 2009 (‘the 25 September Judgement’) which upheld ACR’s title to [...]
Reports: Robert Mugabe Threatens to Bypass Kimberley Process: “We Can Sell Our Diamonds Our Way”
“We can sell our diamonds our own way,” Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe told a trade and tourism fare held in Harare, according to local media reports. “We are trying to play their way, but we could go outside the KP system and do it otherwise,” Mugabe, is reported to have told journalists. The declaration comes [...]
Ingle & Rhode Comment On Controversy Surrounding The Kimberley Process
Ingle & Rhode, the UK’s principal retailer of ethical jewellery and custom engagement rings produced using conflict-free diamonds and fair trade gold, comment on the recent resignation of Martin Rapaport from the World Diamond Council over the current state of the Kimberley Certification process. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KP) was an agreement reached in [...]
Global Witness Warns That Blood Diamonds Still Cast A Shadow over Valentines Day
According to Global Witness, diamonds mined illegally in conflict zones are still finding their way onto the international market and being sold in cities such as London, New York and Paris. The continued existence of so-called ‘blood diamonds’ poses a serious problem for consumers looking to demonstrate their love with a diamond ring this Valentines [...]
New Report urges UN to Learn Lessons on Resource-Fuelled Wars
The lack of a coherent and committed international approach to tackling the role of natural resources in conflict is costing lives in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and heightening the risk of further unrest in other fragile states such as C?te d’Ivoire and Guinea, according to a new report from Global Witness. Drawing on Global [...]
International Symposium on Improving Natural Resource Management in Post-Conflict Countries Addresses Role of Kimberley Process
An international symposium on improving Natural resource management in post-conflict countries held in the University of Tokyo has addressed the issues of ‘Business of Diamond Mining and Human Insecurities in Sierra Leone’, presented by Kazumi Kawamoto of the University of Tokyo, ‘Tracking Down Blood Diamonds: How Industry, Governments and NGOs Made Kimberley Process a Success?’, [...]
Son of Former Liberian President Charles Taylor Ordered to Pay Millions in Torture Damages
Roy M. Belfast Jr., also known as Chuckie Taylor, Charles Taylor Jr., Charles Taylor II and Charles McArther Emmanuel, has been ordered to pay over $22 million in damages to five Liberians who were tortured during the country’s civil war. Taylor Jr. was sentenced to 97 years in prison for crimes related to the torture [...]
The Responsible Jewellery Council Issues Statement to Members Over Zimbabwe’s Marange Diamonds
The reported human rights abuses in the Marange diamond fields in Zimbabwe are of grave concern to all who advocate responsible practices in the jewellery supply chain. The Responsible Jewellery Council (RJC) includes specific provisions regarding human rights and conflict diamonds as part of its Certification System, formally launched in December 2009. Marange Diamonds In [...]
Secret Air Strip Being Built in Zimbabwe’s Diamond Fields – Report
A secret air strip is being built in a Zimbabwean diamond field that is believed to be intended to make it easier for Zimbabwe to receive and pay for arms shipments, reports the UK’s Telegraph newspaper. The newsaper, which shows aerial images of the construction of the mile-long air strip, cites the belief from diplomats [...]
African Consolidated Resources ‘will Continue to Take all Steps it can to Protect its Rights and to Regain Possession’ of Zimbabwe’s Marange Claims
African Consolidated Resources Plc (ACR) has responsed to recent press coverage of orders of the Zimbabwe Supreme Court handed down on 25 January 2010 in relation to matters connected to the claims previously registered in the names of its subsidiaries on the Marange diamond field (the ‘Marange Claims’). The Supreme Court Orders related to an [...]
World Diamond Council Calls for Increased Vigilance of Potential Trade in Zimbabwe’s Marange Diamonds
The World Diamond Council has renewed its call for members of the industry to redouble their efforts to ensure that no diamonds from Marange diamond fields are traded until the Kimberley Process monitor is in place and is actively controlling exports from the area. The KP has developed, jointly with the government of Zimbabwe, a [...]