The Kimberley Process A Model For Global Governance

The Kimberley Process: a model for global governance Diamonds are a cultural icon of western civilisation, a symbol of everlasting commitment. Controversially, their purity, beauty and rareness overshadow the deaths and injuries of the process that brings diamonds from the mines to the fingers of millions of lucky women. The largest producer of rough diamonds on Earth, Africa, not only exploits child labour, but the profits are used to purchase weapons that sustain conflict; conflict diamonds have become an emergent issue in current affairs. This essay will introduce the diamond trade and the diamond cartel, giving insights into its peculiar structure. Firstly by analysing the role of the United Nations in the early 1990’s in tackling†¦show more content†¦The cartel industry has been created and regulated by De Beers. They were able to increase the value of the gems managing the stock to make it artificially scarce. De Beers centralised and shaped the market, by selling 80% of the total supply. In this way the cartel created a public perception around diamonds by praising their pureness and scarcity. In a conflict free economy, diamonds can benefit the broader population and lead to development, however in corrupt states mines are militarised by the militias. Civil wars in Angola, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Liberia, DCR and Cote D’Ivoire have got worldwide attention in the 1990s. Conflicts in these diamond-producing countries have made diamond a source of income for both rebels and governments to financ e their wars. In Angola in 1999 the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola party (UNITA) gained approximately $3-4 million from the trade in illegal diamonds . NGOs pointed out connection between the trade of raw gems and the financing of war in the 1990’s; diamonds were now seen as a factor contributing to bloodsheds. As a response, the international community started to regulate and prohibit the trade in conflict diamonds , under the UN Security Council Resolution 1176. Sanctions such as embargoes were a standard policy against the illicit trade of diamonds. Angolan diamonds were the first ones to be sanctioned by the UN in 1998. Cote D’Ivoire, DRC, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Uganda, Burundi