Diamonds+in+Sierra+Leone

 Diamonds in Sierra Leone 

Taylor, Melissa, Jeff, Keith, Hasan

  media type="file" key="Lupe Fiasco - Conflict Diamonds.mp3" width="240" height="20" Conflict Diamonds by: Lupe Fiasco 

 media type="file" key="13 Diamonds From Sierra Leone [feat. Jay-Z] [Remix].mp3" width="240" height="20" Diamonds from Sierra Leone by: Kanye West 

**__History of Diamonds__: ** 
 * Discovered in 1930
 * Sierra Leone diamonds = finest in the jewlery industry
 * This natural resource wreaked havoc
 * brutality
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">violence
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">conflict
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Siaca Stevens, the prime minister of Sierra Leone, was the cause of these conflicts
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">he recognized how valuable the diamonds were
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Large profits were made because of the diamonds value
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">People did whatever they could to get their hands on these precious diamonds
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">illegal diamond mining
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">illegal exporting
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">trading
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Illegal & legal trading of these diamonds shaped the people
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Prior to diamonds, Sierra Leone was just a dumping ground for freed slaves
 * <span style="color: #ff00ff; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__Fun Facts__: **
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">In 1970, at the height of production, the country mined 20 million diamonds
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Between 1930-1998, approximately 55 million carats were officially mined in Sierra Leone
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Average price per carat was $270.00 (US dollars)
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">The total value of these diamonds is close to $15 billion
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">**NONE** of this money ever benefited the majority of Sierra Leonians



<span style="color: #ff0000; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">**<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__Conflict Diamonds__: **
 * Also known as Blood Diamonds
 * Diamonds that originate from areas controlled by armed forces / mined in war zones
 * Are used to fund military action / those taking part in the rebellion, conflict or civil war
 * illegal trading
 * RUF found ally in Liberia
 * goal was to combat crime and corruption, became clear later the main aim was control of the diamond mines
 * RUF enslaved civilians to work in the mines
 * horrible working conditions and punished often -amputation was common
 * All of this unknown/ignored by outside world
 * It's estimated about $125 million in diamonds was bought by the diamond industry in Europe alone
 * All this money was used to fund the RUF



<span style="color: #0080ff; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">**<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__Cecil Rhodes Diamond Empire: De Beers Diamond Company__: ** ===<span style="display: block; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; text-align: center;">"Diamonds are forever" it is often said. But lives are not. We must spare people the ordeal of war, mutilations and death for the sake of conflict diamonds." ===

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;"> Over two thirds of the world’s diamonds come from one company, De Beers, whose original goal was to:
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">fix prices
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">control supplies
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">limit competition


 * 1) <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">De Beers in 1888 became the sole owner of all diamond mining operations in the country.
 * 2) <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">By 1902, De Beers controlled 90% of worlds diamond production
 * 3) <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">About $125 million worth of rough diamonds were bought by the diamond industry in Europe alone
 * 4) <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">DeBeers Corporation's "single-channel" marketing of diamonds determines the price of rough diamonds

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">De Beers and various companies within the De Beer family of companies engage in <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">//**exploration for diamonds**//, //**diamond mining**//, //**diamond trading**//, and //**industrial diamond manufacture**//.

===<span class="mw-headline" style="color: #0080ff; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;"><span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__The Family of Companies__: === <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">The De Beers Family of Companies is involved in most parts of the diamond value chain.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//De Beers Canada// - **mining**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">// De Beers Consolidated Mines // - **mining**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//De Beers Diamond Jewellers// - **retail**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Debswana// - **mining**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Diamdel// - **trading**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Diamond Trading Company// - **trading**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Diamond Trading Company Botswana// - **trading**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Diamond Trading Company South Africa// - **trading**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Element Six// - **Advanced Materials / industrial diamonds **
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Forevermark// - **retail**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Namdeb// - **mining**
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">//Namibia Diamond Trading Company// - **trading**

<span style="color: #0080ff; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">**<span style="color: #0080ff; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__The Diamond Trading Company(DTC)__: **

<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;"> The rough diamond sales and distribution arm of the De Beers Group, sorts, values and sells approximately 40% of the world’s rough diamonds by value.


 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">

<span style="color: #00ff13; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__Negative effects on citizens__: **
 * Over 2/3 of the population is in absolute poverty, forcing many to work in diamond mining.
 * Children between ages 7-16 work sometimes work 10-11 hour days mining.
 * Conditions expose workers to parasitic diseases in the water, which can be fatal to young children.
 * Work for meager wages, earning only half a dollar a day if they find a diamond.
 * Several thousand children still work in the mines, with at least 1,200 registered.
 * During the civil war the RUF took control of diamond mines of Sierra Leone
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Captured prisoners and enslaved them to work in the mines.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">These workers were brutally punished for the slightest things.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">The RUF exchanged diamonds with Liberian President Charles Taylor in exchange for weapons.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">The future of Sierra Leone will be hurt by children mining.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Lower life expectancy in bad work conditions.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Children will still be in poverty.
 * <span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Working all day there is no time for any type of education.

=<span style="color: #ff8300; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">__New Legislation dealing with the Diamond Industry__: = ** Kimberly Process Certification Scheme ** ** (KPCS) **
 * international governmental certification scheme designed to prevent trade of "blood diamonds"
 * requires government to certify origin of rough diamonds
 * prevent rebel groups from financing from illegal trade of "blood diamonds "
 * began in 1998 by growing international pressure from **Global Witness** and other non-government organizations (NGOs) demanding that governments and the diamond trade industries take action to eliminate the trade in blood diamonds
 * countries that participate must pass legislation and set up control systems for importing and exporting rough diamonds
 * participates are only allowed to trade with other participates -prevent "blood diamonds" from entering the system
 * "Blood Diamonds" still exist and enter the trade market despite the Kimberly Process
 * Weaknesses: found across diamond pipeline
 * many "blood diamonds" are being traded through Ghana and Mali -where they are being certified as conflict free
 * many diamond-producing countries have weak government diamond controls so they cannot guarantee the diamonds they export are conflict-free
 * What must be done to strengthen the system:
 * strengthen government controls
 * increase government oversight of diamond industry
 * introduce better systems for identifying suspicious shipments of rough diamonds
 * finance the scheme
 * If non-compliance is confirmed, then that country is no longer a participant in the Kimberly Process

<span style="color: #ffa700; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%; line-height: 115%;">__United States Policy:__
=<span style="color: #ffa700; font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%; line-height: 115%;">__Canada Policy:__ =
 * January 18, 2001: Bill Clinton passed the **Executive Order 13194**
 * prohibited the importation of rough diamonds from Sierra Leone to the United States
 * May 22, 2001: George W. Bush passed the **Executive Order 13123**
 * banned rough diamond importation from Liberia (Liberia was believed to be a pipeline for conflict diamonds from Sierra Leone)
 * April 5, 2003: passed **Clean Diamond Trade Act** **(CDTA)**
 * instated Kimberly Process Certification Scheme in the United States
 * May 2000: Canada instated the Kimberly Process Certification Scheme
 * Passed **Export and Import Rough Diamonds Act**
 * aimed to help control the importing, exporting and transporting of rough diamonds
 * Canadian Government announced all diamond shipments must have a **Canadian Certificate**, which is used to verify a shipment has been inspected by the KPCS

= __<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 120%;">Worldwide: __<span style="font-family: Tahoma,Geneva,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;"> =
 * July 19, 2000: World Diamond Congress at Antwerp adopted a resolution that strengthened the diamond industry's ability to block sales of conflict diamonds
 * this system thus resulted in all exports and imports of diamonds to have a certificate of origin
 * January 17-18, 2000: the World Diamond Congress became the World Diamond Council
 * passed a bill of legislation that stated rough diamonds were coming from a conflict-free source

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Bibliography

//Blood diamonds//. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.diamonds-are-forever.org.uk/blood-diamonds.htm //Sanctions and war//. (2001, March 21). Retrieved from http://www.un.org/peace/africa/Diamond.html //Seirra leone//. (2009). Retrieved from http://www.uniosil.org/Sierra-Leone.html //Seirra leone conflict diamonds//. (2009, December). Retrieved from http://www.stopblooddiamonds.org/sierra-leone-conflict-diamonds.asp