precious  stone  consis,ng  of  a  clear  and    typically  colorless  crystalline  form  of  pure  carbon,  it  is  the  only  well  known  gem  made  from  a  single  element  and  the  hardest  natural  occurring  substance.  

Diamonds  are  thought  to  have  been  first  recognized  and  mined  in  India,  where  the  stone  could  be  found  many  centuries  ago  along  the  rivers  Penner,  Kisgna  and  Godavari.    

Diamonds  have  been  treasured  as  gemstones  since  their  use  as  religious  icons  in  ancient  India  but  the  popularity  of  diamonds  has  risen  since  the  XIX  century  because  as  we  know,  in  the  mid  XIX  century  was  discovered  a  huge  supply  of  diamonds  in  South  Africa,  also  the  cuEng  and  polishing  techniques  were  improved  as  well  as  the  world  economy.    

The  tradi,on  of  giving  a  diamond  engagement  ring  is  traced  back  to  1477  when  Archduke  Maximilian  of  Austria  presented  Mary  of  Burgundy  with  a  simple  gold  band  set  with  a  diamond  represen,ng  pure,  fiery  beauty.  He  placed  it  on  the  third  finger  of  her  leO  hand,  believing  it  contained  a  vein  that  coursed  directly  to  his  beloved's  heart.  Over  ,me,  this  royal  tradi,on  gained  popularity  around  the  world.    

Today,  according  to  a  recent  De  Beers'  survey,  four  out  of  five  brides  receive  a  diamond  engagement  ring.  

For  centuries  diamonds  have  appeared  in  royal  treasures.  

Adventurers  have  journeyed  thousands  of  miles  to  hunt  them.  

Men  and  women  have  killed  for  them.  

Countries  have  flourished  and  regimes  have  fallen  because  of  them.  

Diamonds  have  always  been  far  more  than  jewels,  they  are  history  twinkling  on  the  skin.  

…Lies  the  blood  covered  stories  of  innocent  people.  

                                                                                   Or  “conflict  diamonds”  are  diamonds  mined  in  a  war  zone  and  sold  to  finance  an  insurgency  usually  in  Africa  during  the  1900’s  including  conflicts  in  Angola,  Sierra  Leone  and  Democra,c  Republic  of  Congo.  

                                                                                                                             Conflict  diamonds  as  those  “that  originate  from  areas  controlled  by  forces  or  fac,ons  opposed  to  legi,mate  and  interna,onally  recognized  government,  and  are  used  to  fund  military  ac,on  in  opposi,on  to  those  governments,  or  in  contraven,on  of  the  Security  Council”.      

The  United  Na,ons  imposed  sanc,ons  against  Na,onal  Union  for  the  Total  Independence  of  Angola  (UNITA)  but  inves,ga,ons  detailed  how  the  movement  was  able  to  con,nue  financing  its  war  efforts  through  the  sale  of  diamonds  on  the  interna,onal  market.  The  UN  tried  to  cancel  the  sanc,ons  breaking  trade  but  instead  all  diamond-­‐producing  states  met  in  Kimberley,  South  Africa,  to  discuss  ways  to  stop  trade  in  blood  diamonds  and  make  sure  that  diamond  purchases  were  not  helping  violence  so  is  here  when  the  Kimberley  Process  Cer,fica,on  Scheme  (KPCS)  was  created.      

Is  the  process  designed  to  cer,fy  the  origin  of  rough  diamonds  from  sources  which  are  free  of  conflict  funded  by  diamond  produc,on.  Is  a  unique  interna,onal  coopera,ve  arrangement  between  governments,  retail  jewelers,  NGOs  and  diamond  industry.  This  process  contributes  on  the  diamond  industry  and  civil  society.  It  is  a  response  to  public  concerns  that  their  diamond  purchases  were  contribu,ng  to  war  and  human  rights  abuses  in  Africa.    

                                                                                               aims  to  ensure  that  conflict  diamonds  do  not  become  intermixed  with  the  diamonds  not  controlled  by  such  rebel  groups.  This  is  done  by  requiring  diamond-­‐producing  countries  to  provide  proof  that  the  money  they  make  from  selling  the  diamonds  is  not  used  to  fund  criminal  or  revolu,onary  ac,vi,es.    

At  the  basic  level,  states  par,cipa,ng  in  the  Kimberley  Process  have  to  meet  minimum  requirements  through  the  representa,on  of  na,onal  ruling  and  make  sure  this  ins,tu,ons  meet  certain  standards  and  processes.  This  includes  import  and  export  ins,tu,ons  as  well  as  internal  controls.  Member  states  must  also  commit  to  full  and  transparent  exchange  of  sta,s,cal  data.  The  Kimberley  Process  Cer,fica,on  Scheme  requires  rough  diamonds  to  be  transported  in  sealed,  altera,on  free  containers  with    fraud  resistant  cer,ficates.  Issued  by  the  expor,ng  country’s  government,  each  cer,ficate  has  a  unique  serial  number.  They  are  backed  by  a  system  of  internal  controls  in  the  producing  countries,  as  well  as  those  countries  that  trade,  cut  and  polish  rough  diamonds.  The  shipments  should  be  exported  to  other  KPCS    par,cipant  countries.  Failure  to  make  these  procedures  may  lead  to  the    removal  of  the  non-­‐complying  member  country  

AOer  the  point  of  export  of  the  rough  diamonds,  however,  diamonds  are  only  subject  to  the  voluntary  System  of  Warran,es  originally  planed  by  the  World  Diamond  Council.  This  system  requires  all  other  traders  in  diamonds,  from  the  rough  diamond  importers  to  in-­‐country  traders,  polishers,  dealers,  and  manufacturers,  to  adhere  to  a  warranty  system  by  which  the  invoice  for  the  diamonds  is  printed  with  the  following  language:  "The  diamonds  herein  invoiced  have  been  purchased  from  legi,mate  sources  not  involved  in  funding  conflict  and  in  compliance  with  United  Na,ons  resolu,ons.  The  seller  hereby  guarantees  that  these  diamonds  are  conflict  free,  based  on  personal  knowledge  and/or  wrihen  guarantees  provided  by  the  supplier  of  these  diamonds.”  

The  system  of  warran,es  is  founded  by  several  commitments,  including:    1.  to  limit  trade  only  to  those  companies  that  include  the  required  warranty  on  their  invoices  2.  to  avoid  buying  any  diamonds  origina,ng  in  non-­‐par,cipant  countries  or  from  unknown  or  suspect  suppliers  3.  to  avoid  purchasing  diamonds  from  sources  found  through  due  process  to  have  violated  government  regula,ons  governing  conflict  diamonds    4.  to  avoid  buying  diamonds  from  any  region  that  is  under  an  advisory  from  a  governmental  authority  sta,ng  that  conflict  diamonds  have  originated  there  

5.  to  refrain  from  knowingly  engaging  in  the  purchase  or  sale  of  conflict  diamonds  or  assis,ng  others  in  doing  so  6.  to  ensure  that  all  company  employees  engaged  in  the  diamond  trade  are  well  informed  of  the  resolu,ons  and  government  regula,ons  governing  the  trade.  

By  June  2005,  a  total  of  67  countries,  were  par,cipants  in  the  Kimberley  Process  and  had  established  na,onal  export-­‐import  controls  for  keeping  out  conflict  diamonds.  The  current  Kimberley  Chair  is  Russia.  The  three  Working  Groups  are  Monitoring,  Sta,s,cs,  and  Diamond  Experts,  while  the  two  Commihees  are  Par,cipa,on  and  Selec,on.  The  en,re  group  meets  in  plenary  session  once  annually  in  October.  The  UN  General  Assembly  consistently  invites  the  Kimberley  Process  Chair  country's  Permanent  Representa,ve  to  the  United  Na,ons  to  report  on  the  progress  of    implemen,ng  the  KPCS  to  the  Assembly  at  its    annual  session.        

“In  southern  Africa,  diamonds  are  an  engine  for  growth,  employment  and  prosperity.  The  World  Diamond  Council  believes  that,  in  addi,on  to  comba,ng  the  scourge  of  conflict  diamonds,  the  Kimberley  Process  has  helped  to  safeguard  these  benefits  that  are  shared  and  enjoyed  by  thousands  of  people  in  communi,es  across  the  region.”    Eli  Izhakoff,  Chairman  of  the  World  Diamond  Council  

“It  is  now  es,mated  that  less  than  1%  of  diamonds  traded  are  "conflict  diamonds"  —  compared  to  es,mates  of  15%    during  the  1990s.”  European  Commission  

Diamond  revenues  enable  every  child  in  Botswana  to  receive  free    educa,on  up  to  the  age  of  13.    Ministry  of  Educa,on,  Botswana  2006  

Jay  Epstein,  Edward.  “The  Rise  and  Fall  of  Diamonds”  (1982).  Simon  and  Schuster.  NY    J.  Weisbroat,  Paul.  “Diamond  Folklore”  hhp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond#Mining  hhp://www.brilliantearth.com/kimberley-­‐process/    hhp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kimberley_ProcessHistory  hhp://www.theglobalist.com/globalicons/syndica,on/sample.htm