SURAT (Commodity Online): In Surat, people will know more about Kimberley Process than ‘khaman’, the traditional and popular Gujarati dish. And if something goes wrong in the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) that will affect the Surati’s life badly. Because, Surat, the city which polishes 8 out of 10 diamonds in the world, depends a lot on its Rs 80,000 crore diamond trade.
Even as reports of increased demand from various countries boosted the morale of diamond workers and traders in Surat, an NGO’s report has come as a dampener now.
The 2009 edition of Diamonds & Human Security Annual Review by Partnership Africa Canada said the KPCS is failing because it fails to control the illegal diamond trade in some African nations. PAC is a Canadian NGO involved in efforts to halt trade of conflict diamonds since a decade.
The refusal of governments at the centre of KPCS’ administration to get tough on blatant smuggling, human rights abuses and money laundering are reasons for failure, says the report.
A collapse of KCPS would reopen doors to a criminalized diamond trade and to conflict diamonds. It would be disastrous for an industry that benefits so many countries, and for millions of people who depend directly and indirectly.
KPCS was established in 2003 to prevent blood diamonds from entering diamond trade, and to assure consumers that diamonds purchased by them are not financing war and human rights abuses. Currently, it comprises 49 participants representing 75 countries.
Tracking of diamonds is the main purpose of KPCS, to guarantee that they come from a known, clean source. However, in two of Africa’s largest diamond producing countries — Angola and DRC — the report says, the internal controls are so weak that nobody can be certain where the diamonds they export really came from.
While stating that governments world over are doing all they can to prevent conflict diamonds from entering the trade, industry sources in Surat accepted that reports of human rights violation or smuggling in diamond producing countries can put off buyers and hit demand in western countries.
The report mentions how discrepancies in trade & production statistics from Lebanon, Guinea and Republic of Congo have raised unanswered questions. It also mentions inaction of KPCS on smuggling, mismanagement & govt massacre of diamond diggers in Zimbabwe.
KPCS also stands accused of inaction in spite of flagrant non-compliance such as smuggling of Ivorian conflict diamonds through neighbouring countries and smuggling of entire Venezuelan diamond production from other countries.
