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Governments, Jewelers One Step Closer to Stopping Conflict Diamonds Trade
 Government and diamond industry representatives will meet to continue discussions of the Kimberly Process – an international plan to eradicate the sale of “conflict diamonds – October 29-31 in Sun City, South Africa.
Earlier this year, Congress voted to ban the import of conflict – or blood – diamonds, gems used to fund global terrorist activities and brutal civil wars in some of Africa’s poorest countries. Coordinating the implementation of the Kimberly Process, an accord to ensure that imported diamonds are legally mined and traded, has proven difficult, but many human rights organizations are optimistic that talks are moving forward.
Wilfred Mlay, World Vision’s regional vice president for Africa sees a model for the process’ success in the protection of African elephants from ivory hunters. “If these magnificent creatures could find protection under an international ban on ivory ... then Africa’s human population surely deserves protection under a ban on the illicit sale of diamonds.
More than 70 governments currently participate in the Kimberly Process.
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