

Download Word Document: Kimberley Process Update - November 2006
What is the Kimberley Process?
The Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (Kimberley Process) is an international governmental certification scheme that was set up to prevent the trade in diamonds that fund conflict. Launched in January 2003, the scheme requires governments to certify that shipments of rough diamonds are free from blood diamonds.
How did the Kimberley Process begin?
In 1998, Global Witness began a campaign to expose the role of diamonds in funding conflict, as part of broader research into the link between natural resources and conflict. Growing international pressure from Global Witness and other NGOs demanded that governments and the diamond trade take action to eliminate the trade in blood diamonds.
In response, in May 2000, the major diamond trading and producing countries, representatives of the diamond industry, and NGOs met in Kimberley, South Africa to determine how to tackle the blood diamond problem. The meeting, hosted by the South African government, was the start of an important and often contentious three-year negotiating process to establish an international diamond certification scheme.
In November 2002 it was endorsed by participating governments, the diamond industry and NGOs and was finally launched in January 2003. The Kimberley Process was endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) and the United Nations Security Council (UNSC).
How does it work in practice?
Countries that participate must pass legislation to enforce the Kimberley Process. They must also set up control systems for the import and export of rough diamonds. Participants are only allowed to trade rough diamonds with other participants. The aim is to prevent blood diamonds from entering the Kimberley Process system.
The Kimberley Process participants (governments) and observers (the diamond industry, NGOs) meet once a year to discuss the implementation of the scheme. Working groups monitor participants' implementation of the scheme, assess applications to join, gather and analyze statistics, and discuss technical issues. Global Witness, Partnership Africa Canada (PAC), and other NGOs have had an unusual level of involvement in developing and building support for the scheme, helping to write the Kimberley Process Technical Document, and playing an active role in negotiations and implementation.
In 2006 participants in the Kimberley Process are undertaking a formal three year review to assess its effectiveness and make recommendations to strengthen it so that it achieves its aim of eliminating blood diamonds. This review presents a crucial opportunity to close the loopholes in the Kimberley Process and make sure it is credible and effective in practice. Unfortunately, key governments taking part in this review have been unwilling to take strong and much-needed actions to strengthen the Kimberley Process and respond to the situation in Cote d'Ivoire and in other countries with weak controls.
Is the Kimberley Process working?
Despite the Kimberley Process, blood diamonds still exist and are entering the legitimate trade. Although the scheme makes it more difficult for diamonds from rebel-held areas to reach international markets, there are still significant weaknesses in the scheme that undermine its effectiveness and allow the trade in blood diamonds to continue. A United Nations Group of Experts on Cote d'Ivoire has recently found that poor controls are allowing significant volumes of blood diamonds to enter the legitimate trade through Ghana, where they are being certified as conflict free, and through Mali. As well as pointing to the need for stronger diamond controls in the region, the Group of Experts recommends that international trading centres introduce better systems for identifying suspicious shipments of rough diamonds. Many other diamond-producing countries have weak government diamond controls that cannot guarantee the diamonds they export are conflict-free.
In the DRC since the peace agreements signed in 2002, fighting between the national army and various rebel groups has continued in parts of the country, particularly in the east. Some of this fighting has centred around diamond mines and other areas rich in natural resources. Weaknesses in the Kimberley Process are found across the diamond pipeline, including in countries with trading, cutting and polishing centres. A recent United States Government Accountability Office (GAO) report shows that blood diamonds may be entering the US because of major weaknesses in the implementation of the Clean Diamond Trade Act, the US law which implements the Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS). According to the GAO report, "the United Nations (UN) and other sources report that illicit trading of rough diamonds still exists and could potentially finance civil conflicts as well as criminal and terrorist activities." The GAO report further concludes: "To succeed, KPCS depends on all participants having strong control systems and procedures for collecting and sharing trade data on rough diamonds, for inspecting imports and exports of these diamonds, and for tracking confirmations of import and export receipts."
There is still a flourishing illicit trade in diamonds globally. They are a high value commodity that are easily smuggled and Kimberley Process controls have not been able to stop this. For instance in Sierra Leone Kimberley Process experts assess the illicit trade to be between 15 and 20%. This is a problem to the Kimberley Process because any kind of illicit trade exposes gaps in the system that unscrupulous diamond traders can use to trade in blood diamonds. In addition, the illicit trade has been shown to fund terrorism and aid money-laundering activities. Many illicit traders are known, but the industry is still largely secretive and unwilling to tackle the problem by working more proactively with law enforcement agencies. The diamond industry has failed to honour its commitments to support the Kimberley Process by not policing itself effectively while governments have failed to step up to the line and hold the industry accountable for this.
How to make the Kimberley Process more effective
The Kimberley Process must be strengthened significantly. Global Witness is calling for the Kimberley Process to be effectively implemented in all participants' territories. The Kimberley Process must require that participants have strong diamond control systems in place that are fully implemented. This must include adequate checks to make sure the diamond companies are complying with the scheme. The diamond industry must also deliver on its commitments and operate in a more accountable and transparent manner. The Kimberley Process is increasingly being hailed as a success and the problem of blood diamonds is perceived as being solved by some.This is leading to complacency and a lack of political will to improve the scheme.
The following actions must be taken by the Kimberley Process governments if this agreement is to be effective and credible in stopping the trade in blood diamonds.
For more information on Global Witness' recommendations to strengthen the Kimberley Process, please see the independent review of how the scheme is working commissioned by Global Witness: An Independent Commissioned Review Evaluating the Effectiveness of the Kimberley Process at www.globalwitness.org/diamondreports. Global Witness has also made an open submission to the Kimberley Process review: http://www.kimberleyprocess.com:8080/site/www_docs/rel ated_docs1/review_kpcs_-_response_global_witness.pdf