(Rapaport…July 29, 2002) J.D. Bindenagel, the new U.S. State Department Special Negotiator for Conflict Diamonds, told industry leaders today in New York that he is committed to helping the Kimberly Process move forward, but without creating any additional bureaucracy. At a meeting at the Diamond Dealers Club (DDC), Bindenagel ruled out an international trade ban and hoped the Bush administration could develop a process to deal with the global import and export of diamonds.
“You’ve made tremendous gains in the Kimberly Process,” Bindenagel said. “It’s now the U.S. government’s responsibility to look at how best to implement it.”
Bindenagel noted that the Clean Diamond Trade Act pending in congress might not need to be altered to gain passage. Both the Kimberly Process and the Clean Diamond Trade Act will be matters Bindenagel will be discussing with administration officials next week.
Nongovernmental organizations (NGO)s, he said, were an important part of the process and he will be meeting with its leaders in the near future to hear their views on the tracking of the global diamond trade.
Industry members who met with Bindenagel include Jacob Banda, president of the DDC; Eli Izhakoff, chairman of the World Diamond Council (WDC); Matthew Runci, president of Jewelers of America and executive director of the World Diamond Council; Cecilia Gardner, executive director of the Jewelers Vigilance Committee; William E. Boyajian, president of the Gemological Institute of America (GIA), Sean Cohen, president of the International Diamond Manufacturers Association; Leon Cohen, president of the Diamond Manufacturers and Importers Association; Gaetano Cavalieri, president of the International Jewellery Confederation; Rory More O’Ferrall, director of public and corporate affairs for De Beers; Jeff Fischer, immediate past president of the WDC; Sally A. Morrison , director, Diamond Information Center (DIC); Brandee Dallow, DIC; Joan Parker, De Beers LV and Martin Hochbaum, DDC.
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