Accord on conflict diamonds

Diamond sales are funding Sierra Leone's civil war

International diamond traders have agreed on measures to curb the illegal trade in precious stones used to fund civil wars in Africa - now known as "conflict diamonds".

At the World Diamond Congress in Antwerp, the two main diamond trading associations - the International Diamond Manufacturers' Association and the World Federation of Diamond Bourses - settled on a plan to establish a system of certificates intended to prove where the diamonds come from.

Anyone who breaks the embargo will be banned out of the business

Peter Meeus, Diamond High Council

Under the agreement, anyone found trading in illicit diamonds is to be expelled from the business, and any country that is knowingly involved will lose its export accreditation.

Human rights campaigners immediately welcomed the decision, endorsed by delegates from all the diamond producing countries, mining companies, traders, cutters and polishers.

New rules

"We will immediately close off all the legal loopholes by which conflict diamonds may currently be entering the market," said a statement issued at the end of the Congress.

The industry fears negative publicity will affect sales

A BBC correspondent at the Congress said the measures represent the most radical overhaul of diamond industry practices for over a century.

The agreement was welcomed by Robert Fowler, Canada's ambassador to the United Nations and author of a recent UN report which was sharply critical of the industry.

His report detailed the trail of diamonds stretching from Angola's Unita rebels to international trading centres such as Antwerp.

"What's so exciting for us today is, for the first time, we're talking about a comprehensive approach," Mr Fowler said.

Under the new rules, all rough diamonds will have to be shipped in sealed packages certified by the authorities in the exporting nations and verified by a new international diamond council, said Sean Cohen of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association.

"Anyone who breaks the embargo will be banned out of the business," said Peter Meeus, head of the Diamond High Council which oversees the Antwerp trading centre, the world's largest.

"We don't want these people, we don't need them," said Mr Meeus.

UN backing

Traders' representatives are to hold talks with representatives of affected governments in London on Thursday in a bid to set up the new system of certificates before the end of this year.

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Human rights campaigners attending the Congress said that, if strictly implemented, the new rules could have an important impact in preventing rebel groups from funding their wars through diamond sales.

But Alex Yearsley of the pressure group Global Witness warned that, to be fully effective, they would need the backing of the United Nations Security Council.

The issue of conflict diamonds came to a head earlier this year when UN peacekeepers were taken hostage inside the rebel-controlled mining region of Sierra Leone.

Boycott fears

The UN has issued embargoes against the sale of rebel diamonds from both Angola and Sierra Leone.

This has slowed but not stopped the trade.

The agreement at the Congress follows pressure from governments and the United Nations as well as human rights groups.

But the industry is also worried about the growing adverse publicity linking diamonds to war and conflict in Africa.

Analysts say the industry fears that, if it fails to act, it could eventually face a consumer boycott such as that suffered in recent years by the fur trade.