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No Conflict Diamonds | An article from this month that also supports my point

March 30, 2006, 12:48 am

I found this article last month but forgot to post it.

Hong Kong, the “Diamond Centre of Asia” has a certification scheme designed to regulate the trade of the contraband and is involved in the Kimberley Process, a U.N.-backed global scheme to stop the illegal trading of these gems. But how much impact the city’s good behavior makes is questionable — it appears impossible to stamp out smuggling because the monitors intended to block them are paid a pittance.

http://english.ohmynews.com/articleview/article_view.asp?article_class=3&no=273705&rel_no=1

    • —Baby BlingBling | no comments
    (posted in the diamond, conflict diamonds, conflict diamonds africa, sierra leone diamond conflict, diamond conflict in sierra leone, conflict diamond mining, essays on conflict diamonds, conflict diamond statistics category)

    Is Bling Bad - Would I Even Accept a Diamond?

    January 31, 2006, 11:01 pm

    I’m terribly distressed about this article I found that’s from 2002. It’s called “Ten Reasons Why You Should Never Accept a Diamond Ring from Anyone, Under Any Circumstances, Even If They Really Want to Give You One“.

    I don’t know if my heart can bear the thought of not being iced out. I need the bling. I must have it. I love sparkly things but I don’t want anyone to be maimed, killed, or enslaved to provide me one.

    That means I need to find artificial means of the bling bling, or figure out which ones of these companies are true to their word of not participating in the conflict trade.

    It’s not as simple as believing they wouldn’t lie. You see, when a corporation is public, particularly here in America,  it is obligated to do what is best to maximize shareholder value. And if you remember Enron, or the Fight Club movie, that means if the cost of lying is less than the cost of telling the truth, they lie. People in corporations are often good people… but the nature of a public corporation is such that profit is king.

    I’m not knocking corporations. I own one that I hope to take public in a few years if I can figure out how to maximize profit without minimizing humanity. I’m just letting you know - that’s just the nature of the beast.

    At the time the aforementioned article was written, I don’t think there was a solution to this problem. But there is now, at least that’s what I’ve been told from my preliminary research online. I’ll be digging deeply in future days to find out if it’s true…. in the meantime, here’s a quote and a link to the article I was referencing.

    6. Diamond Mine-Owners Violate Indigenous People’s Rights
    Diamond mines in Australia, Canada, India and many countries in Africa are situated on lands traditionally associated with indigenous peoples. Many of these communities have been displaced, while others remain, often at great cost to their health, livelihoods and traditional cultures.

    7. Slave Laborers Cut and Polish Diamonds
    More than one-half of the world’s diamonds are processed in India where many of the cutters and polishers are bonded child laborers. Bonded children work to pay off the debts of their relatives, often unsuccessfully. When they reach adulthood their debt is passed on to their younger siblings or to their own children.

    8. Conflict Diamonds Fund Civil Wars in Africa
    There is no reliable way to insure that your diamond was not mined or stolen by government or rebel military forces in order to finance civil conflict. Conflict diamonds are traded either for guns or for cash to pay and feed soldiers.

    I truly want to believe that the UN policies from last year and all the related awareness that occured changed this situation. I really want to think that is true.

    But I’m holding off from buying a diamond or asking/hinting for one until I know for sure.

    Read the whole article about whether to accept a diamond though. Scare the crap out of yourself. It’s for a good cause.

    • —Baby BlingBling | no comments
    (posted in the diamond, conflict diamonds, conflict diamonds africa, diamond conflict in sierra leone, conflict diamond mining category)

    More about Bling: Consequences and Repercussions

    January 31, 2006, 6:51 am

    Okay, I can’t sleep. And apparently this joint about bling is absolutely hot right now. So I might as well scoop you with all the linkage.

    Of course, I really just want to have all the links ready for me in one place but share and share alike, right?

    (more…)

    • —Baby BlingBling | no comments
    (posted in the diamond, diamonds, conflict diamonds, conflict diamonds africa, sierra leone diamond conflict, what are conflict diamonds, diamond conflict in sierra leone, conflict diamond mining, what is a conflict diamond, conflict diamond statistics category)

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