Thirteen Things I’ve Learned About Conflict Diamonds

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In my upcoming book (releases August 200 “Edge Of The Storm”, Conflict Diamonds make an appearance and continue to lead my characters to the conclusion of the series in “Eye Of The Storm”. Researching this subject has been painful. None of us want to see the starvation and violence that Africa often presents us on television. To know that the solitaire that sparkles on my finger may have contributed to that suffering is hard to take. But stones are not free of their past, even though polishers do their best to grind away the bloodstains.

1. “Blood Diamonds” or “Conflict Diamonds” first got their name during bloodshed and civil war in the Republic Of The Congo That civil war simmered and spit for decades. When the cold war ended and U.S. military support (that was fighting communism) ended, both sides scrambled for diamonds to fund their fighting.

2. Diamonds in the “Conflict Areas” are Alluvial Diamonds.
Rather than the diamonds dug from Kimberlite volcanic tubes (as in South Africa), Diamonds in the Republic of the Congo, Sierra Leone and Cote d’Ivoire (formerly The Ivory Coast) are Alluvial Diamonds that have washed up into river beds. More here .

3. The Most Common Visual Association with “Blood Diamonds Happened Due to Voting In Sierra Leone, rebels thirsty for power and violence, cut off hands of those who voted in a fair and free election which was an indictment of the the RUF (Revolutionary United Front). War victims are often seen with their hands and forearms missing. Most of them are located in the diamond rich areas of Sierra Leone.

4. DeBeers Continued to Process Diamonds Coming From Africa Until 1999
Even in the face of mounting violence and bloodshed, the Cartel continued to process diamonds stained with war victim’s blood until the United Nations imposed sanctions. Even then, DeBeers probably continued to process smuggled diamonds in Belgium. I have no idea if the diamond my husband gave me in 1999 is from a conflict zone or not.

5. DeBeers finally lost their grip on the diamond market in the late 90’s when the Australian diamond industry thumbed their noses at them. The Aussie’s rock! They made deals with India to polish their diamonds and weathered the controlling lashing out that DeBeers attempted.

6. Diamonds Are Not Rare
Contrary to popular opinion, Diamonds aren’t rare or even hard to find. DeBeers has been in the business of buying every source of diamonds in the world. It is a true story (depicted in Tom Zoeller’s book “The Heartless Stone”) that diamonds were discovered in the United States. In Arkansas, a mining operation attempted to extract diamonds found on a farm there. DeBeers and the U.S. Government got into a long drawn out legal battle over anti trust laws. The huge diamond cartel buys up the diamonds and controls the flow onto the market. There’s a ton of them but they’re all locked up in DeBeer’s vault in London.

7. Mrs. Arthur “Winnie” Pariker of Dallas found 15.31 carat stone and called it “The Star of Arkansas”. The place where she found them is now a state park.

8. The Tagline “Diamonds Are Forever” was created by Frances Gerety”
The evolution of the advertising campaign of DeBeers is fascinating. It began with the concept to make a diamond forever linked to marriage (which succeeded). They are now aiming it toward women to “buy for themselves”. In their words, “Your first diamond stood for “we”. Let the next one stand for “me”.” Reading how DeBeers has marketed diamonds had me shaking my head.

9. The Civil War in Sierra Leone and the Republic of the Congo ended in 2002
Currently there is a tentative peace in both areas. In the Republic of the Congo, however, the end of hostilities has not ended the violence. Disaffected soldiers and rebels still terrorize local miners. The government has tried to regulate the mining of diamonds, but illicit stones are still on the market. (DeBeers claims on 1% but I doubt this figure)

10. In July of 2007, illicit diamonds were smuggled into Anchorage, Alaska
THIS STORY actually began my search for the origin of conflict diamonds. It’s been a fascinating subject, but very sad.

11. The Cultures That Are Most Devastated by Diamonds, Don’t Value Them
In Sierra Leone, The Republic of the Congo and India (where small boys work as polishers, damaging their eyesight and lungs) diamonds are not valued as mystical, beautiful stones. They are a source of money and that’s all. No one in these country finds them pretty. They think we’re nuts to wear them as jewelry or give them as a promise of marriage.

12. The Smuggling Road Is Hard To Trace
Diamonds go from the Republic of the Congo’s diamond river, to Liberia to Antwerp, Belgium. Although DeBeers has developed The Kimberly Process to legitimize diamonds coming through their hands, it is not full proof.

13. Beauty Is In The Eye of the Beholder
I’ve never been crazy about diamonds. To me, they were cold and hard. But DeBeers has done its work too well. My husband told me he wanted to buy me a diamond big enough to be a “wolf repellent”. Meaning, it was to warn off people who might think a cheaper ring meant they could “steal me away”. (No I never really understood that either). Even now, I stare at my ring and wonder if it started in a muddy river in Sierra Leone and extracted at the point of a gun.
It’s still beautiful, but I can’t see it without wondering.

All of my information has been gathered from Wikepedia, Tom Zoeller’s “The Heartless Stone”,the History Channel’s documentary “Blood Diamonds” and the fabulous Global Witness.

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