Editor’s Note
This article discusses the destabilizing effects of illicit mining, particularly the trade in conflict diamonds, on African nations. It highlights U.S. diplomatic concerns regarding governance, development, and human rights, as well as the potential role of responsible business practices.
U.S. State Department officials stated that illegal mining activities in Africa, represented by “blood diamonds,” undermine regional political stability and economic development, leading to a deterioration in human rights records. The officials said U.S. businesses can play a significant role in curbing the blood diamond trade.
Robert Hormats, U.S. Under Secretary of State for Economic, Energy, and Agricultural Affairs, said the poorly regulated “blood diamond” trade in Central and West Africa provides funding for armed groups, enabling them to organize armed rebellions, attack civilians, and disrupt the region’s political stability and economic development.
Hormats noted that the armed conflicts funded by illegal mining activities in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have caused massive civilian casualties, and the current situation is particularly severe. He said,
Hormats made these remarks during a speech at the Washington-based think tank, the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He pointed out that illegal mining and mineral trade, symbolized by blood diamonds, are issues of high concern to the U.S. government, both from a moral standpoint and in terms of regional political and social stability and economic development.
According to United Nations documents, blood diamonds, conflict diamonds, or war diamonds refer to “diamonds originating from areas controlled by forces or factions opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments, and used to fund military action in opposition to those governments, or in contravention of the decisions of the United Nations Security Council.” However, some international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) believe the UN definition is too narrow, as it does not include the condoning of violence and human rights abuses in diamond mining and trade by some African governments.
In the 1990s, Sierra Leone’s eight-year-long bloody civil war brought international attention to blood diamonds. According to industry estimates, at the peak of illegal diamond mining and trade, 14% of global diamond production was used to fund armed conflicts in Central and West Africa. Besides the DRC and Sierra Leone, Angola, Liberia, the Republic of the Congo, and Côte d’Ivoire are also considered major hubs for the blood diamond trade.
The NGO Diamonds for Africa Fund estimates that over the past 15 years, armed conflicts funded by blood diamonds have caused 500,000 deaths in Angola, 50,000 in Sierra Leone, and nearly five million in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
In April 2003, the U.S. Congress passed the Clean Diamond Trade Act. The act stipulates that as the world’s largest diamond consumer, the United States has an obligation to “sever the link between diamonds and armed conflict.”
Under Secretary Hormats said that in addition to U.S. government diplomatic efforts, private enterprises can play a crucial role in eliminating the illegal diamond trade. He said:
In 2003, to reduce the flow of blood diamonds into the legitimate supply chain, the United Nations established the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS). The 47 participating governments guarantee that diamonds produced and sold within their borders are not used to fund armed conflicts.
However, the Diamonds for Africa Fund NGO points out that this scheme lacks effective oversight and sanctions against illegal diamond trade supported or tacitly approved by governments. For example, although Liberia joined the Kimberley Process, large quantities of blood diamonds from neighboring countries enter Liberia through smuggling and subsequently flow into the international market.
Under Secretary Hormats acknowledged that it is very difficult for U.S. companies to distinguish between legitimate diamonds and those from conflict zones in the international market. He said:
The Diamonds for Africa Fund NGO points out that the negative impacts of blood diamonds are not confined to the African continent. The organization states that child labor is rampant in India’s diamond processing industry. In many parts of India, due to a lack of government oversight, one in every ten diamond polishers is a child.