The Kimberley Process emerged from a meeting held in 2000 in Kimberley, South Africa, when the world`s largest diamond producers and buyers came together to address growing concerns and threats of consumer boycott over the sale of rough and uncut diamonds to finance the brutal civil wars in Angola and Sierra Leone – the inspiration for the 2006 film Blood Diamond. By 2003, 52 Governments and international stakeholders had ratified the system and introduced a system of country-of-origin diamond “passports” to accompany every shipment of rough diamonds around the world. Countries that could not prove that their diamonds were conflict-free could be excluded from the international diamond trade. Two days later, a young diamond dealer enters Funji Kindamba`s office. He pours a handful of yellow and gray greasy stones on Kindamba`s desk. Using large tweezers, Kindamba pushes the diamonds into piles with a worn handle, separating the bulk from the tiny diamonds used in pavement work, where small stones are set very close to each other. Finally, they agree on a price: $200. Kindamba notes the name of the seller, the price he paid and the total carat weight for the entire package – 4.5 – in a small notebook. Kindamba has no idea where diamonds come from. “There are thousands of mines,” he laughs. “It`s impossible to keep track.” Kimberley`s trial began in May 2000 in Kimberley, South Africa. This item was placed on the agenda of the 55th session of the United Nations General Assembly.
Diamond-producing States affected by the adverse social effects of the trade in “conflict diamonds” have begun to agree on a framework to reduce these influences. The United Nations imposed sanctions on UNITA in 1998 through UN Security Council Resolution 1173, but investigators led by Robert Fowler submitted the Fowler Report to the United Nations in March 2000, detailing how the movement could further fund its war effort by selling diamonds on the international market. [7] The UN wanted to take action against this anti-sanctions trade, but had limited enforcement powers; The Fowler report therefore sought to name the countries, companies, governments and individuals involved. [8] [9] This led to a meeting of South African diamond-producing countries in Kimberley, North Cape, in May 2000. [10] [11] In September, a final ministerial meeting followed in Pretoria, from which the CPCS originated. [12] Ironically, it is the company that has spoken most clearly about the evils of diamond mining that is doing the most to help Congolese miners right now. Brilliant Earth, with the help of DDI and the NGO Muepus, funded a school to get children like Kalala Ngalamume, 12, out of the mines and back to class. When his father died of malaria last year, it looked like Ngalamume would join his neighbor Mwanza in the mines. Instead, he was selected as one of the top 20 students in the Brilliant Mobile School pilot program based on his age, previous school years, and the fact that he was at risk of working in the mines. “Without school, I know I would have to do everything I can to survive, even looking for diamonds,” he says. But hundreds of other children in his village are still at risk. “We need to do something so that all these children have the opportunity to be educated, so that they are not poor, so that they can do something with their lives.” The KPCS attaches great importance to the collection and publication of data on diamond mining and international trade.
Member States are required to formally submit statistics which can be verified by audits. [30] In addition, all Member States are required to draw up and submit an annual report on the diamond trade. [31] According to the KPCS Working Group on Statistics (WGS), the KPCS monitored rough diamond exports by $35.7 billion in 2006, equivalent to more than 480 million carats. The number of certificates issued by KPCS members was 55,000. The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) is the procedure introduced in 2003 to prevent “conflict diamonds” from entering the traditional rough diamond market through United Nations General Assembly resolution 55/56, in line with the recommendations of the Fowler report. The process was launched “to ensure that diamond purchases do not finance the violence of rebel movements and their allies who are trying to undermine legitimate governments.” [1] For a country to participate, it must ensure that any diamond originating in the country does not fund a rebel group or other body that seeks to overthrow a Government recognized by the United Nations, that any diamond export is accompanied by a Kimberley Process certificate, and that no diamond is imported or exported from the country. a non-member of the system. [15] This three-step plan is a simple description of the steps taken to ensure a chain of countries dealing exclusively with conflict-free diamonds. By limiting diamond revenues to government-approved sources, the Kimberley Process is neutral with respect to individual governments.
Global Witness is a London-based NGO, a key member of the KPCS, and was one of the first organisations to promote the subject of conflict diamonds internationally. [43] They claim that a report they wrote, “A Rough Trade,” was in part the inspiration for the film Blood Diamond. [44] Given the horrific realities of the diamond trade, it would be tempting to abandon the purchase of a diamond altogether or, as Rodriguez ultimately did, opt for the purchase of a synthetic alternative. But Congolese mining officials say diamonds are a vital source of income — if not the only one — for about 1 million small miners or artisanal miners in Congo who dig by hand to find the crystals that will one day adorn a bride`s or groom`s engagement ring. “If people stop buying our diamonds, we won`t be able to eat anymore,” Mwanza says. “We still won`t be able to go to school. How does this help us? According to the provisions of the KPCS, participating States must meet the “minimum requirements” and introduce national legislation and institutions; export, import and internal controls; and also commit to transparency and the exchange of statistical data. Participants may only legally trade with other participants who have also met the minimum requirements of the system, and international deliveries of rough diamonds must be accompanied by a KP certificate guaranteeing that they are free from conflict. In addition, any company that trades in rough and cut diamonds is required to keep records of warranty invoices received and warranty invoices issued when buying or selling diamonds.
These guarantee entries and outputs must be audited and reconciled annually by our own auditors. At the request of a duly authorized government agency, these records must be able to prove that you are complying with the Kimberley Process. In addition, all industry organizations and their members have adopted the following principles of self-regulation: The annual report of all KPCS members is part of the peer review mechanism established by the KPCS. In the United States, for example, all companies that buy, sell, and ship rough diamonds must submit an annual report to the State Department by the April 1 deadline. [33] The report[34] must include company contact information and a detailed breakdown of the total carat weight and U.S. dollar value of rough diamonds imported, exported and stored (still in stock) during the previous calendar year. These are also sorted by HTS codes for unsorted rough diamonds (precious and industrial stones), coarse industrial diamonds sorted and red rough diamonds sorted – the latter will most likely be polished into finished stone and jewellery for retail sale, while industrial diamonds are more likely to be used in cutting and drilling tools. Failure to submit this annual report in a timely manner may result in a fine of up to $10,000. If it is established that the offender committed an intentional offence, he or she may be fined up to $50,000 and imprisoned for up to ten years.
[35] In August 2010, another prominent author of the CP and also Africa`s top diamond official, the African Diamond Council (ADC) and ADPA President Dr. .